The FGP Blog

One of the hardest things to do in today’s cutthroat market is to give your business staying power. No matter how great your product is or how well crafted your action plans are, you need to take steps to insure that your product will remain in place for the long term.

These tips are easy to put into practice and will give you and your business the boost you need to avoid fading into obscurity.

Looking for a job was a job itself. You fought the good fight and finished the race, or so you thought. Now it’s time to get back to work. You may have aced the resume and interview, but are you prepared to make a strong first impression in the days and months ahead? Experience will not save you in hard times.

One of the most challenging aspects of being a manager is finding people who are right for a position. This often means looking for a candidate who knows more than you in certain areas. This gets challenging because many managers think they need the upper hand or their authority will be questioned.

When employees perform poorly, the blame almost always falls on them. They weren’t driven enough, didn’t take direction well or couldn’t set priorities. It is assumed that an employee’s success is his or her own responsibility. But is it?

Wouldn’t it be great to get all your major tasks done in the morning? If you did, think about what you could accomplish the rest of the day. It may seem impossible, but with a few tweaks to your schedule, you can make it a reality. Follow these steps and you’ll be able to get most of your work done before lunch so you can refocus.

Being in charge of your workplace can be difficult. You want to maintain good relationships within your team, but every now and then you have to have tough talks with your employees. Here are some tips on how to get through these conversations without destroying morale.

You should always feel comfortable in your workspace. But you are probably sharing that space with others, which means you have to be considerate toward them at work. If you’ve ever wondered if your officemates resent the way you use shared space, use this checklist to see if you’re guilty.

Meetings might seem like an essential part of the average workday, but often they turn into swirling conversations that consume productivity and time. A good meeting can bring about clarity and agreement, while a bad one can result in nothing but frustration and a wasted day. Use these tips to keep your meetings on track and on task.

Each month FGP honors a Professional Staffing employee in our Greenville and Columbia markets that models our mission to help build great companies through their extraordinary work ethic. Find out more this month about Ileana Diaz representing our Greenville office and Tiffani Cocklin representing our Columbia office.

Many things are important to people when deciding where to work. Commute, benefits, salary, coworkers… but what about happiness? Is job satisfaction the same thing as being happy? If you’re interested in finding a job that makes you happy beyond getting a paycheck, consider the following when job hunting.

The talent of the 21st century workforce has arrived and they have some demands. If you’re competing to employ this innovative talent pool, you need to know what it takes to recruit, evaluate and retain them.

Each month FGP honors a Professional Staffing employee in our Greenville and Columbia markets that models our mission to help build great companies through their extraordinary work ethic. Find out more this month about Tiffany Huff representing our Greenville office and Charlotte Isom representing our Columbia office.

If you have any intention of moving up the ranks, sooner or later you will have to demonstrate leadership. Being a leader can be difficult. Showing that you are capable of taking charge will earn you more respect and help you get things done more quickly.

It can come as a shock when an employee suddenly quits his or her job. Managers often wonder. “What happened?” Knowing what drives people away can be an important tool in keeping turnover low and your employees happy.

Organizational charts provide an easy way to see who reports to who within your company. They establish communication channels, keep people accountable to those above and below them, and make an office feel more organized in general. So if organizational charts are so beneficial, why are some companies trying to keep them a secret from their employees?

Each month FGP honors a Professional Staffing employee in our Greenville and Columbia markets that models our mission to help build great companies through their extraordinary work ethic. Find out more this month about Carol Zuniga representing our Greenville office and Shannon Dieugenio representing our Columbia office.

The buzzword in business is to be “innovative,” but is this word nothing more than meaningless business jargon? When it comes to exploring new methods or voicing new ideas, most companies are strongly risk-averse.

Last month marked the 10th anniversary of the television premier of LOST. Crashed on a deserted island (or so they think), the protagonist Jack tells the survivors of a plane crash, “If we can’t live together, we’re gonna die alone.” It’s an astute message for survival in the workplace. By taking positive action, you can effectively handle stressful conflicts.

Each month FGP honors a Professional Staffing employee in our Greenville and Columbia markets that models our mission to help build great companies through their extraordinary work ethic. Find out more this month about Rose Woelker representing our Greenville office and Jenifer Gordon representing our Columbia office.

Every hiring manager looks for three key things: Are you qualified, are you motivated and are you the right fit? They want to know if you are going to be the employee that builds momentum or rips it apart. How you build relationships with your colleagues is key to a successful career.

You may have found meaningful, purposeful and profitable work, but one thing can quickly change it all – your coworkers. Awkward office situations can become a real distraction and make you feel anxious. A disciplined culture requires disciplined people, and that includes how you respond when you find yourself in a sticky situation.

Your job description starts off, “We are currently seeking a talented individual with 8+ years of relevant experience.” Stop right there. You’ve already fallen into a trap of screening out high-potential candidates by placing more value on experience over skills and abilities.

Leaders, take note. The number one sought after skill in senior executives is the ability to motivate others.

According to a recent IIC Partners survey of 1,270 business leaders, 68% of top leaders said they preferred a senior executive who could motivate and inspire. How do you motivate? We’ve got five tips you can start today.

Each month FGP honors a Professional Staffing employee in our Greenville and Columbia markets that models our mission to help build great companies through their extraordinary work ethic. Find out more this month about Kristen Nichols representing our Greenville office and Laura Northup representing our Columbia office.

In today’s fast paced work environment, it can be easy to become more concerned with being the first person to say something than with the quality of what you’re actually saying. A witty response or a subtle put down might seem like the best choice in the heat of the moment, but this kind of communication can really hurt relationships between coworkers.

Looking for your next great job? FGP recruiters will be at the Greenville County Hughes Main Library Thursday, September 4th from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. We are recruiting for candidates interested in Direct Hire, Temp-to-Hire and Temporary positions in Greenville, Spartanburg and the surrounding areas.

If you are currently working, we encourage you to stop by on your lunch break to meet with us. Whether you are new in your career or just looking to make a change, we are here to help guide you in your search. Please bring a copy of your resume with you. We hope to see you there!

Everyone knows that mornings can be rough, even for the earliest of birds. It’s easy to feel discouraged about the day or even the week ahead, but by asking yourself just a few simple questions you can change a stressful morning into a constructive time of reflection. Focus on opportunities and try to acknowledge challenges, and you’re well on your way to setting yourself up for success every day of the week.

As a leader within your organization, you’ve made some satisfying decisions about your career to get to where you are today. How do you ensure your career stays rewarding? First of all, great leaders must be effective in managing themselves.

Every month FGP recognizes the Professional Staffing employee in our Greenville and Columbia markets that embodies our mission to help build great companies through their amazing work ethic. Find out more this month about Levada Irby representing our Greenville office and Argentina Perez representing our Columbia office.

In today’s workplace, you are likely exposed to an open-plan office setting with little privacy – all in the name of collaboration. Your computer is equipped with two or more screens and multiple widgets. Your smartphone beeps and flashes for your attention. And we wonder why we can’t seem to get any work done.

How often do we get interrupted on the job? Eleven times an hour, according to research firm Basex Inc. They say distractions make up 2.1 hours of an average day. For every distraction, it takes workers five minutes to recover from the interruption.

How can we overcome workplace distractions? Here are some quick productivity tips.

The adage, “Practice Makes Perfect,” is a bit of a misnomer. It’s easy to commit to practice, but when you break concentration, don’t take practice seriously or take short cuts, your goals will take much longer to achieve. And if you don’t practice the proper techniques, perfection isn’t possible.

When a team falls behind, we often look to how we can unite employees around a common goal. We approach employee performance in a holistic manner, testing new team building techniques. The kicker is the role of the manager understanding and removing obstacles that impact an employee’s ability to succeed, and quite often those challenges are not universal.

Top managers and leaders need to brush up on their employee management skills from time to time. Tasked with a variety of situations daily, it’s easy to get thrown off your game. You don’t want your leadership legacy to be that you are a bad boss. Here are five work-related measures you can work on.

Every month FGP recognizes the Professional Staffing employee in our Greenville and Columbia markets that embodies our mission to help build great companies through their amazing work ethic. Find out more this month about Margie Oliver-Pickett representing our Greenville office and Katrina Nazreth representing our Columbia office.

If you are like most, you love giving advice far more than receiving it. You believe in being true to yourself, and therefore, you have the greatest sense of your own capabilities. It’s easy to see how we may view performance reviews as obstacles rather than opportunities to improve and stretch our thinking.

Your career is a self-directed journey. That doesn’t mean you’re irreplaceable at work. No one is every really afforded that level of protection. But have you ever thought someone was bulletproof when it came to cutbacks or layoffs? We promise these people are not invincible, but they do have some ironclad characteristics.

Dishonest behavior can be found in just about every organization. Inappropriate computer use, misused time, rule bending, exaggerations, defensive lies and blatant falsehoods can harm workplace relationships or even bankrupt a company. Truth be told, everyone can have a dark side. But what leads people down the path of corporate malfeasance and what can you do about it?

Every day at work we make a conscious effort to “get in the zone” and get stuff done. But how do you get there? Researchers have labeled this “zone” and are now calling it “flow.”

Flow is an optimal state of consciousness where we feel our best and perform our best. In a state of flow, your decisions and actions arise effortlessly from one to the next. It’s like your mind is on autopilot. You are so focused on the task at hand that everything else doesn’t matter.

Leadership isn’t defined by seniority or superior intellect. Great companies consist of people who search for the best answers and don’t rely on a single source of brilliance. Understanding your leadership strengths can lead to greater career advancement and success for your employer.

Did you know there is a 33% increase in heart attacks when we return to work on Monday mornings? Mondays also get the rep for a 25% increase in work-related injuries. Job stress is the leading source of stress for adults. Despite all that goes on in your workplace, the good news is you can do some things to manage stress.

Each month FGP recognizes the Professional Staffing employee in our Greenville and Columbia markets that displays our mission to help build great companies through their extraordinary work ethic. Find out more this month about Darnekia Glenn representing our Greenville office and Laurie Clanton representing our Columbia office.

If you seek to build a culture that supports innovation, creative leadership can bring unconventional solutions. However, you may be keeping creative people out of leadership roles and not even know it.

Plugged as “one big love fest” by the Sporting News and others, there’s a lot we can learn from a very lengthy, tearful MVP speech by Kevin Durant. Beyond the emotion, the top playmaker for the Oklahoma City Thunder gave some valuable leadership lessons we can apply in the workplace.

We’ve all experienced the boring business meeting. It drags on forever. Participants become disinterested. Everyone feels that little is being accomplished.

Most people don’t look forward to meetings because there’s little engagement. Goals and strategies must be based on understanding. How can you achieve this if your meetings are riddled with nothing but lengthy agendas filled with workflow updates?

Is one word defining your life? It’s so easy to say “no.” You blow off the Chamber of Commerce event. You turn down the opportunity to volunteer on a board. You pass on an opportunity to lead a project at work. It’s so easy to make excuses and pass blame, but while you are on the sideline, someone else is working on a career plan for success.

Networking is one of the most effective job search tools to advance your career. Only about 20% of all available jobs are ever advertised. Networking eliminates cold calling and can lead to referrals. If you don’t show up prepared, however, you can lead yourself down a path of insecurity and reluctance.

Every month FGP recognizes the Professional Staffing employee in our Greenville and Columbia markets that display our mission to help build great companies through their extraordinary work ethic. Find out more this month about Nancy Eaton representing our Greenville office and Kimberly Jefferson representing our Columbia office.

While the outlook for 2014 remains positive, economic growth continues to limp along. It’s easy to get overwhelmed by the current jobs market and the challenges of slow growth. If you are looking for someone to master these business patterns, here are some tips on identifying and developing leaders.

True, not everyone can be Google, Apple or Facebook, but you can learn a thing or two from these industry giants. Branding and culture are at the core of these well-known consumer brands. Whether or not your company is known as a great place to work can make all the difference in attracting top talent.

Each month a Professional Staffing employee is chosen in our Greenville and Columbia markets that displays the FGP mission to help build great companies through their extraordinary work ethic. Find out more this month about Summer Johnson representing our Greenville office and Summer McDaniel representing our Columbia office.

You already accomplished standing out in the interview process and got the job! But now that you want to advance in your company, how do you stand out at work too?

It’s not just about how hard you work. You need to look at your own personal brand. How smart do you work? How dedicated are you to serving your customers and your company? Are you respected as an individual with high merit?

What’s acceptable in today’s work environment has drastically changed. Employers are identifying detractors to the company’s productivity and credibility, and unprofessional behavior may be preventing you from landing your dream job or promotion.

If you thought business etiquette was obsolete, think again. Casual work environments that produce long-term mediocrity are giving way to cultures of collaboration and discipline. Rudeness, slang and sarcasm will tarnish your reputation. Employers are looking for employees who are focused and energized by results.

Onboarding is the process through which new employees acquire the necessary knowledge, skills and behaviors to become effective members of a company. Effective onboarding increases both the performance and retention of new employees.

Each month FGP recognizes a Professional Staffing employee in our Greenville and Columbia markets that displays the FGP mission to help build great companies through their extraordinary work ethic. Find out more this month about Patricia Georgetti and Carmen Mays representing our Greenville office and Janice Johnson representing our Columbia office.

If you have the suspicion that your workforce is simply exchanging work for a paycheck, it’s time for you to examine your people practices. Beyond financial success, sustainable, high-growth companies effectively manage people and culture, too.

When it comes to establishing a sustainable competitive advantage for your business, it’s your workforce that will drive long-term value and performance. A decline in workforce engagement can lead to lower customer engagement and ultimately declines in sales and profit.

If you think it is still an employer’s job market, you’re still living in 2009. Granted, job growth has been slow over the past five years, but employment has improved significantly, not just nationally, but here at home. What does that mean for you?

Do you need to improve your time management skills? Are you looking for a better way to share projects with your team? Want to organize your contact list? Here are 10 apps that may help you stick to your business New Year’s resolutions.

We realize our culture is our brand. Not only do we find great people, we employee them, too. As we grow as a company, we seek to reinforce and empower our company culture. One way FGP International does this is by showing our employees with authentic praise for a job well done.

Every month FGP chooses a Professional Staffing employee in our Greenville and Columbia markets that embodies the FGP mission to help build great companies through their extraordinary work ethic. Find out more this month about Lisa Blackwell and Yashica Aarons representing our Greenville and Columbia offices, respectively.

Companies participate in contract-to-hire as a benefit for both themselves and the candidate they are hiring. It is essentially a “try before you buy” technique allowing both the candidate and employer to reduce their risk in a mutually beneficial employment situation.

It’s time for new leadership within your organization and perhaps you’ve zeroed in on some top talent. Not so fast. Considering that about 30% of new managers and executives fail and leave their jobs within 18 months, are you sure you’ve got the right candidate?

What’s your business resolution for 2014? Want to cut spending, reach new sales objectives or expand your workforce? If you want to reach your goals, you can learn a lot from the two most popular resolutions for 2014.

Are creative breakthroughs suppressed within your organization? When an idea comes forth that is unusual, it’s our natural instinct to shut it down. But that is not how great companies are made. Innovative solutions require creative listening.

Find Great People has been named to the Grant Thornton South Carolina 100 ranking of the largest privately owned companies headquartered in the state. Ranked No. 90 overall, FGP was one of three professional staffing and executive search firms to make the list featured in the November/December edition of South Carolina Business magazine.

Every month FGP honors the Professional Staffing employee in our Greenville and Columbia markets who demonstrates an extraordinary work ethic and lives out the FGP mission to help build great companies. Find out more this month about Amie Snell and Carli Rutkowski representing our Greenville and Columbia offices, respectively.

Each month FGP honors the Professional Staffing employee in each market who demonstrates an extraordinary work ethic and lives out the FGP mission to help build great companies. Find out more this month about Jessica Rhoton and Cathy Ramage representing our Greenville and Columbia offices, respectively.

You’ve probably heard the growing cries stressing the importance of STEM (Science, Technology Engineering, and Mathematics) majors, but did you know that the predicted number of jobs within the IT space is more than all other STEM majors combined? What if we told you that 90% of all schools do not even teach Computer Science? Couple those two things with the fact that in 2010 the Bureau of Labor and Statistics predicted that IT careers would grow by a minimum of 22% and a very unfortunate picture has been painted; more IT jobs and less IT talent.

If you are an employer looking for great candidates, a compelling value proposition is important to attracting great candidates. Your perceived value becomes reality, and if your value comes across self-serving, unclear or trite, your industry’s top talent may look elsewhere.

Our employee of the month award goes to the Professional Staffing employee in each market who demonstrates an extraordinary work ethic and lives out the FGP mission to help build great companies. Find out more about Neal Littlejohn and Annie Holbrook representing our Greenville and Columbia offices, respectively.

If you seek to drive social, civic or cultural change, you must tell a compelling story. Whether you are seeking a VP of Marketing or looking to hire a nonprofit consultant, if he or she doesn’t have experience utilizing mobile communications, your message may fall on deaf ears.

If you are looking for a great place to share ideas and grow trusted relationships within manufacturing, consider networking at SOUTH-TEC, the Southeast’s premier manufacturing event coming to Greenville Oct. 29-31.

To be held at the TD Convention Center, the show will feature manufacturing machinery in action, educational sessions and certificate programs. SME, the tradeshow organizer, recently announced it is expanding the show floor to accommodate greater demand. More than 300 companies have committed to exhibiting and show promoters expect 4,000 attendees.

A recent Gallup survey says only 30% of workers are engaged in their work. This means seven out of every 10 employees are just going through the motions of their jobs. Gallup estimates that actively disengaged employees cost the US up to $550 billion in lost productivity per year.

The Southeast is leading the manufacturing resurgence in America. Why? In a new white paper from Find Great People International, our manufacturing and engineering team spotlights the growth in the region and shares the framework for the recruitment of top engineers and leaders in manufacturing.

The number of managers and executives willing to relocate has more than doubled compared to the first two quarters of 2012, which is evidence of an improving job market. A recent report also suggests more than half of corporate executives are willing to consider a new job this year. How are you retaining and attracting the best people for your C-Suite?

FGP selects Professional Staffing employees each month who have strong work ethic and live out our goal to help build great companies. These employees are chosen based on client and recruiter feedback. Learn more about Jessie Santangelo and Rob Gunning representing our Greenville and Columbia offices, respectively.

Quite often it's the simple things that make us a better leader, but sometimes we are too concerned with the complex world around us. If you are looking to gain more respect from coworkers, customers and business partners, there are some straightforward concepts you may want to adopt.

Find Great People joins DNA Creative Communications once again for their “Shine the Light on Your Nonprofit” series.

The session—to be given Wednesday, Sept. 18—is titled, “Investing in Non-profit Infrastructure: An Engine to Effective Programming.” The workshop will address strategies on recruitment, technology and financial growth.

What do you make of Millennials? Books such as “Generation Me” and “The Narcissism Epidemic” have labeled this young generation as egotistical, entitled and overconfident. Before you pass judgment, you may have more in common than you think.

Each month, Professional Staffing employees are selected who have strong work ethic and live out our goal to help build great companies. Learn more about Deborah Bastoni and Nadia West representing our Greenville and Columbia offices, respectively.

Looking for your next great job? FGP recruiters will be at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center Wednesday, August 28th from 10:00 – 2:00 pm. We are recruiting for candidates interested in Direct Hire, Temp-to-Hire and Temporary positions in Columbia and the surrounding areas. If you are currently working, we encourage you to stop by on your lunch break to meet with us. Whether you are new in your career or just looking to make a change, we are here to help guide you in your search. Please bring a copy of your resume with you. We hope to see you there!

Numerous reports show an increasingly candidate-driven market. More employers are turning to recruiters to uncover talent that matches a specific group of highly technical skill requirements. If you are a job seeker, there are several things you can do to develop a great recruiter-client relationship.

Our candidates of the month are Professional Staffing employees who have an extraordinary work ethic and live out the FGP mission to build great companies. Find out more about Hannah Jones and Briley Derrick representing our Greenville and Columbia offices, respectively.

Whether you are managing a nonprofit, serve on a nonprofit board, or are directly responsible for marketing your organization, come learn about effective public relations, fundraising and communications strategies.

Looking for your next great job? FGP recruiters will be at the Greenville County Hughes Main Library Tuesday, August 6th from 10:00 – 2:00 pm. We are recruiting for candidates interested in Direct Hire, Temp-to-Hire and Temporary positions in Greenville, Spartanburg and the surrounding areas. If you are currently working, we encourage you to stop by on your lunch break to meet with us. Whether you are newer in your career or just looking to make a change, we are here to help guide you in your search. Please bring a copy of your resume with you. We hope to see you there!

For more than 10 years, Chuck Drake has been recruiting C-Level candidates within the for-profit healthcare industry. In his new white paper, “Four Tough Questions Every Hiring Manager Should Ask,” he digs deep into the challenges and obstacles hospitals face in securing top talent.

The award goes tot he Professional Staffing employee who demonstrates an extraordinary work ethic and lives out the FGP mission to build great companies. Find out more about Brent Lewis and Sara Graber representing our Greenville and Columbia offices, respectively.

Have you ever calculated your turnover costs? You are probably familiar with some of the hard costs, such as severance pay, recruiting and training, but there are a lot of hidden costs that can impact your bottom line. How effective are you at acquiring top talent and boosting employee retention?

How your board is constructed and engaged can have a profound impact on the success of your nonprofit. A recent survey found 20% of trustees said their charity board lacked a diverse range of skills.

The research was done by Trustees Unlimited, a firm that specializes in recruiting trustees to nonprofit organizations in the United Kingdom. They surveyed 1,600 trustees and trustee candidates and found that more than half believe a more diverse board would enhance their charities’ effectiveness.

U.S. manufacturing is growing again. According to PayNet Inc., the amount of investments by small manufacturers is up 48% since the Great Recession. As investments are made in property, plant equipment and tools, we cannot afford to forget about safety.

The latest report from PayNet (Q4 2012) shows manufacturers of industrial machinery and equipment have fully recovered to prerecession levels. Transportation equipment manufacturers are investing 12% more than in 2006. Instrument producers also showed positive gains.

Brittany Brown moved to Greenville from Surfside Beach where she was working for Seaside Rentals in Guest services/Property Management. She currently works for one of our great companies sharpening her administrative skills in the insurance industry. She does a great job of representing FGP through her wonderful work ethic and attitude in the workplace. Our client has mentioned on multiple occasions how they would love to have a clone of her!

Columbia:

Kristen Gordon is a recent graduate of The University of South Carolina. She joined one of our great companies as a Member Services Representative and has received excellent reviews from her supervisors. She has outstanding work ethic and has been a great addition to the team. Way to go Kristen!

Ty Gilliam moved to the area from Colorado several years ago and took some time off to stay at home with her children. She has a strong accounting background and was ready to get back in the field with temporary positions.

FGP International has become one of South Carolina’s premier professional staffing firms by developing a worldwide network of relationships with great candidates. One of the ways we find great candidates is through great people, like you!

For this reason, we offer a candidate referral program. You can earn a $25 gift card for every candidate you submit that we place in a position lasting two weeks or longer.

Gym regulars, who dread the overwhelming crowds who flock their gyms every January, can now return to their routine workouts. Many newcomers, who pledged to shed a few pounds, have dropped the ball on their New Year’s resolutions. Are you still on track with your business resolutions? Let’s rewind the clock a bit and focus on goal setting.

It’s almost the end of Q1. Are you where you need to be? Have you been hiring the right people? What were your goals for the New Year? To succeed in your long term goals, you need to develop a plan that will drive you to get the greatest return. Consistent with your company’s principles, your plan should prioritize hiring, spending and achieving sales goals, and you should routinely visit your goals throughout the year.

Candidates that rely on job boards find little success. Why? For almost half of the job listings out there, a company insider or a top candidate has already been identified, and quite possibly, already been hired. As an employer, however, is your own job board deceiving you?

Studies have shown that less than 10% of candidates that interview are actually actively seeking out a new position. In some cases, these are people who are unemployed, underemployed or unhappy with their current employer.

Erica Shaffer recently moved to South Carolina from Tennessee where she was a news reporter. She joined Keenan Suggs as a receptionist in December 2012 and has received excellent reviews. Keenan Suggs loves her so much that they made her a permanent employee at the beginning of this month.

KeenanSuggs provides insurance, employee benefits and risk management solutions for individuals and businesses throughout the Southeast. Founded in 1949, this unique firm has offices in Columbia, S.C., Greenville, S.C., and Raleigh, N.C.

Tina Smith is currently working in a customer service role at Transtech. We have receive great feedback on Tina and she enjoys working with customers daily. Tina always greets visitors with a smiling face!

Megan Easterling joined Unitrends Software in October as an Asset and Renewal Specialist. She has demonstrated a great work ethic and attitude!

If you have ever held a new position within a company, you can remember being “the new hire.” And yes, it is new and exciting, but what you tend to forget about is the uncertainty, and maybe even anxiety, that managed to creep in when you didn’t know all of the team’s norms, names and processes. We have compiled a short list of tips you can implement to make sure every new employee feels like they’re already part of the team:

Company Announcement: Announcing a new team member’s start date in advance and then giving them a tour on the first day is a great way to get started on the right foot.

Welcome Signs: Setting out a personalized welcome sign for each new employee shows them how excited everyone is to have them join the team.

Welcome Gift: On top of preparing each new team member’s desk with technology and basic office supplies, you can also give them a small gift, maybe even with your logo on it. Some great gift ideas are shirts, coffee mugs (filled with candy, of course), and baseball caps.

“Who to Call” List: Providing a list of “go-to” people lets every new team member know who they can call with specific questions. The list could include the folks who handle HR, payroll, technical support, supplies, and marketing/communications.

Team Lunch: Everyone loves a team lunch and this is easy to do inexpensively. Each division can take new team members out on their first day so they can get to know the folks they’ll be working with on a daily basis.

Schedule: You can schedule a new team member’s entire first week, including “desk time” and training. It’s important to have that time to set up e-mail/calendar preferences and organize a new desk.

Meetings with Leadership: It’s a great opportunity for each new employee to meet with members of senior leadership during their first few weeks of employment, before they become busy with their own work.

Office Buddy: You can designate a “buddy” for each new employee. This doesn’t need to be a huge time commitment. Just someone who will check in each day and make sure new team members have what they need.

Lastly, we recommend preparing a “working list” of important things for new employees to know. A Culture Cheat Sheet for each new employee can answer all of those random questions that they might not think to ask. It should provide information about the break room, office attire, office supplies, ordering business cards/collateral and should even direct them to important items such as band-aids and the company candy stash!

Autumn is upon us and, with the change in season, many organizations have turned their attention toward planning for the upcoming year. Somewhere between candy corn, hay rides and costume parties, most folks will find themselves shifting focus to budgeting and strategic planning. Are you prepared to begin this annual process?

Consider looking beyond traditional sales goals and budgeting to determine how strategic and tactical HR plans could impact the coming year. Think for a minute with us—you wouldn’t leave your company finances to chance. Why would you do so when it comes to your people?

So what should be on your 2013 HR “People Plan?” If you are not sure, here are some HR trends our team has noticed lately:

Compensation Analysis. Compensation Studies are showing upward movement in several professions and industries after the recession. A Compensation Analysis helps ensure your company will effectively attract, retain, motivate and reward employees into 2013.

Training is a great way to invest in your people and make them more competitive. Internal training programs can be self-directed or run by folks brought in from the outside. The most important thing is to be intentional with the planning and design of these training programs.

Strategic Planning. In order for a business to be successful, there needs to be a roadmap for success. Regardless of your organization’s size or industry, strategic planning followed by well-executed implementation will play critical roles in establishing and maintaining long-term growth and profitability. Our Senior HR Consultants have facilitated successful strategic planning and implementation initiatives for various organizations across multiple industries.

Employee Opinion Surveys are an effective upward communication tool to identify employee issues and to provide insight on solutions that will encourage a positive climate characterized by high productivity, moving your organization forward.

Handbook Updates. Many Company handbooks are out of date due to 2012 NLRB activity and new technologies in the workplace such as Smart Phones. Ensuring an up-to-date handbook is a wise investment in risk management.

As you consider your HR needs for the coming year, we encourage you to learn more about the importance of developing your employees and aligning your human resources activities with the overall company strategy. At FGP, we can partner with you. Our HR Consultants would love the opportunity to learn your business and show you, step-by-step, how to develop, implement, and achieve your human resources initiatives for a successful 2013.

For more information on this or other HR topics, please contact FGP HR Consulting directly at 864-553-7285 to set up time with a certified HR consultant.

Please join us in congratulating Donna Caldwell as our Professional Staffing Employee of the Month for October! This award goes to the Professional Staffing employee who demonstrates an extraordinary work ethic and lives out the FGP mission to build great companies.

Donna has worked with us since July and is currently at Sloan Construction as their Accounts Payable Coordinator. We are proud to work with folks who have a great work ethic and attitude like Donna!

You might not be ready to hear this, but it’s time to start thinking about how you want to recognize your employees during the holiday season. The holidays provide an opportunity to show them your appreciation, even if it’s through something simple. Holiday gifts and incentives don’t need to be complicated to be meaningful. When it comes to these things, it really is the "thought that counts."

It’s difficult to put a price on showing your employees how much they mean to you. The idea of picking a unique gift that everyone will enjoy, and that won’t break the bank, might seem overwhelming.

Just because an idea seems too obvious or simple doesn’t mean that it won’t be appreciated. Here are a few ideas to help get you started:

Time & Flexibility: Everyone becomes so busy during the holidays with shopping and gatherings; why not give employees a half or whole day off to use during the month of December? Another option is to offer a more flexible work schedule during the holidays. Folks will appreciate the opportunity to avoid the evening and weekend crowds/traffic while running holiday errands.

Gifts: Whether it's a gift card, a turkey or shirt, giving a gift to your employees is sure to show your appreciation of their hard work.

Events: If you want to do more than give your employeesa gift, you can hold a holiday event. Schedule a lunch, dinner or party for employees during the holidays. Even a casual holiday lunch in the office provides a fun break. Just be sure to plan early so it doesn’t interfere with other events.

Dress Down: Think about letting go of some of those unnecessary rules during the holidays. Allow employees to wear jeans or dress more casually.

Holiday Bonus: The Christmas bonus or gift card is a very timely gift for folks who are already putting a strain on their budgets during the holidays. This simple gift, especially with a short, hand written note, can go a long way.

The key to success is to plan and execute early. Everyone becomes busy as the end of the year approaches and the last thing you want is to be scrambling to prepare gifts at Thanksgiving. Decide on a gift, develop a timeline and plan early!

As you wrap up the third quarter you’re probably beginning to reflect on 2012 and think about 2013. One of the most important questions hiring managers can ask at this time of year is, “Do I have the right people on the bus?” Do you need to add more employees? Develop and train your current people? Remove some folks from the roster?

The best advice we can give you is to start these processes early. If you want to accomplish any of your strategic “people goals” by the first of the year, you don’t want to find yourself running out of time during the holidays.

A few points to consider when thinking about adding folks to your team this year:

Folks don’t typically want to change jobs during the holidays so think about timing and when/how to start the process. The first step is deciding what you need, defining the core skill sets and developing a job description for each position you’d like to hire. Why are job descriptions important? They provide clarity on expectations.

Consider how you will reach potential candidates. Will word of mouth bring great candidates in your industry? You may need to consider other options such as posting positions on internet sites or using external help. You must be even more careful when looking to confidentially replace someone.

You may come across potential new employees who are expecting year-end bonuses or have accrued vacation. Are you prepared to compensate them additionally or even match their bonus/vacation? A great option to explore is a signing bonus.

Changing jobs is a family decision and a very important one. If a potential candidate is married and/or has children, they’ll need to consider much more than an increase in salary or job satisfaction to make a change. You can show candidates that you’re the right fit for them by giving them information about the best local schools and offering a competitive benefits package. People already don’t like change during the holidays. They are not going to want to pull their children out of a school mid-year unless they perceive the opportunity to be worth it.

When you are looking for a specific skill set or niche, you might need to consider looking outside your local area. This option will expand your list of potential candidates, but will also increase your chances of relocating someone, as well as prolonging the process.

Expect the counter-offer. More and more companies are fighting back with aggressive counter offers because they don’t want to lose employees at the end of the year. Be prepared to remind candidates of the reasons they had for accepting a new position prior to putting in their notice.

It's the perfect time of year to be evaluating and assessing your current team and strategic "people goals." Do you have the right people on your bus?

Your Personal Brand is an important topic that we visited back in June and, as we mentioned, we feel that it is imperative that you continue to monitor and re-shape your brand as you grow personally and professionally. Social media, such as LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter can be great tools to help build your brand, when used correctly. Below are some things to keep in mind while using social media:

Be careful of what you post online. Pictures, status updates, etc. that are inappropriate will hinder your brand.

Don’t re-tweet, re-post, or re-share links without checking them first on your own.

Don’t share too much information. Your entire social network doesn’t need to view information about your bad day, family drama, political views, work issues, etc. In order to keep a professional network, keep the personal drama to yourself.

Be active and present in your social media. Don’t create an account on a social media site if you don’t plan to use it. Social media requires daily (or at least weekly) attention – be sure to keep up with your individual profile. If you have pending notifications or friend requests, people may think that you are ignoring them.

Treat these “online” relationships with people as real relationships. Be friendly and professional!

With LinkedIn, remember that this is a professional website. If you wouldn’t put it on a resume, DON’T put it on this site.

Only connect with people that you know. Don’t just add everyone and anyone. Some sites, such as LinkedIn, may even have consequences for reaching out to people you don’t know.

Social media can be a great tool for building your Personal Brand as well as your network. Just remember to use it wisely!

Looking for your next great job? FGP recruiters will be at the Greenville County Hughes Main Library this Thursday, September 6th. We are recruiting for candidates interested in both Temp and Temp-to-Hire positions in Greenville, Spartanburg and the surrounding areas. Please bring a copy of your resume with you. We hope to see you there!

Notes:
• Please BRING A RESUME with you to the job fair.
• Professional business attire is suggested.
• If you are already registered with FGP, please send an email to your appropriate recruiter letting them know of your availability!

It’s that time of year again. Back to school. Back to football season. Back to “real life.” We understand that coming off of summer vacation can be tough, and we’re here to help. At FGP, we believe that great people make a great company, and we want to partner with you in building and maintaining your team.

Our Executive Search team goes by many names – headhunting, recruiting, permanent placement. But internally, you’ll hear it affectionately nicknamed “Search.” And that’s really what we do. We search for, recruit and find those great people that make your company exceptional. With our niches in Accounting & Finance, Manufacturing & Engineering, Non-profit and Healthcare, our recruiters are passionate about finding the right talent for your organization. Partnering with one of our top-notch recruiters will be well worth the investment.

Commonly, we hear that clients are shocked to learn how big our IT team is, as well as the vast array of technical roles we can assist them with. Our average tenure is now over 5 years with FGP and we are dedicated to providing the best service within the IT space. From helpdesk to CIO, short-term contracts, consulting and large scale projects, to permanent placements, we are truly a one-stop shop for all things IT.

Our HR Consulting division is a one-stop shop for all of your HR needs. With services like HR Assessments, Organizational Development, Leadership Consulting and Performance Management, our HR Consultants can assist you in developing your great people with our on-demand HR Services. And in the unfortunate cases where you have to let someone go, our team can come in to make that job easier and the transition process more smooth.

Lastly, our Professional Staffing division offers temporary/contract employees, temp-to-hire employees and also direct hire. Specializing in the areas of administrative support, marketing, HR, legal and banking, customer service and accounting and finance, our Staffing Recruiters are eager to learn about your needs and find the right people for your team.

We are here to support you in any and all of your “people needs.” Give us a call today!

The concept of outplacement was created more than 30 years ago and is often defined as, "efforts made by a downsizing or right-sizing company to help previous employees through the transition to a new job, and provide them with support during their re-entrance into the job market." Originally outplacement was provided for top executives but has become a very common offering for positions at all levels to minimize the impact to employees leaving the company, as well as the employees that remain.

Over the years, outplacement deliverables have been enhanced by technology, yet the support items continue to include career guidance, resume writing, interview preparation, network development, and job search strategies. Companies have typically provided outplacement to employees as a transitional service as they exit their position. However, there has been a recent shift in the way outplacement is being viewed by employees and employers.

In today’s economy, candidates are more cautious in their job search and concerned with market stability. Facing such reality has resulted in a new way to view discussions around outplacement and potential questions from candidates. Progressive job seekers are becoming more interested in how employees are treated during a downsizing and what services may be available to them if they are impacted in a future layoff. Candidates are becoming increasingly more concerned with outplacement services, severance packages, and notification policies. This recent shift has left companies asking if outplacement is a service or is it really a benefit that should be discussed in detail, similar to health coverage and 401(k) plans.

While no one is comfortable discussing the possibility of job elimination or reductions in force, a study conducted by the Aberdeen Group in 2011 indicates that companies openly offering outplacement benefits are able to enhance their image and reputation, and experience gains in the recruitment cycle, cost per hire and even unemployment claims. This proactive conversation may set the tone for an environment of open and honest communication and provide a small comfort that the employee will be taken care of should they be faced with a transition in the future. Understanding how companies treat their employees during a downsizing says a lot about the company and the type of care they will provide throughout the employment life cycle. Discussing benefits during the recruiting or on-boarding process demonstrates an employer’s authentic approach to how they communicate and interact with their employees, ultimately improving employee engagement and commitment.

There are various aspects to considering outplacement services and understanding the value to the organization, the impacted employee(s) and all other parties that may be indirectly impacted. Companies that provide outplacement programs have realized various benefits to include:

Maintain morale, motivation and productivity of remaining employees during times of change

Help an organization be viewed as an employer of choice and potentially enhance the public perception of the company’s brand and treatment of their workforce

Provide a “soft landing” and smooth transition for the employee and minimize the chance of litigation and other negative actions

Assist in reducing stress that accompanies job loss by providing various resources for the employee’s benefit

Preserve dignity of displaced workers and enhance the displaced worker(s) ability to become re-employed quickly

Employers must ultimately decide if discussing outplacement at the on-set of employment or during the transitional period is most appropriate for their workforce and within their culture. Research shows that losing a job is one of the most stressful experiences a person can face, ranked third behind death and divorce (Fired to Hired, Journal to Accountancy). Providing outplacement to employees at all levels enables employers to soften this devastating impact and offer resources that will help the employee transition and regain employment more efficiently and quickly. Regardless of the approach that is chosen, providing outplacement continues to be a valuable resource for employees as well as employers.

For more information on this or other HR topics, please contact FGP HR Consulting directly at 864-553-7285 to set up time with a certified HR consultant.

Everyone wants to make a good first impression when they start a new position. Dressing professionally, arriving on time, listening and taking notes, and being eager to learn all about the job and how to perform in the position are usually ways to impress your boss on the first day. But, you also want to continue to exceed expectations months or even years down the road. Here are a few tips when it comes to being a great employee:

Own up to your mistakes:If you make a mistake at work, and mistakes do happen, own up to it. Your boss will be impressed with your maturity and will be more confident that you are learning from your mistakes.

Avoid office drama or gossip:Let’s face it; some people thrive off of drama and gossip. Don’t be that person. Participating in office drama does nothing good for your rapport with your coworkers or for your attitude while you’re at work. It not only causes tension, but it is also the quickest way to burn bridges and provide distractions.

Don’t abuse office technology:Having a fax machine, copier, access to Internet and phones, and other technology at your fingertips can be tempting. Be sure not to abuse your right to use these devices. Although it seems like these are “free resources,” be aware that they still cost your company money.

Be personable, not personal: Working with people who you get along with and can relate to can be great. However, you don’t want to distract your coworkers with personal problems or issues that would more appropriately be discussed outside of work. These are distractions that can cause people to lose focus on the work they could be accomplishing.

Don’t watch the clock: It can be tempting to count down the minutes until 5 o’clock. Watching the clock makes the day go by so much slower and will only distract you, decreasing productivity. If you find yourself counting the minutes, try putting a post it note over the clock so you won’t be tempted to peak at what time it is!

Stay away from controversy:Controversial conversation can rub people the wrong way and result in more tension and distractions. Topics such as religion, race, sex, and others should not be brought up in the workplace.

Don’t get too comfortable:No matter how casual your office may be, be sure to dress appropriately for work. Always show up for work in professional clothes and posture yourself professionally. You never know what the day may bring and you wouldn’t want to find yourself meeting a client when dressed unprofessionally.

During the month of July, I have had the privilege of spending much quality time with my Swedish cousin, her husband, and their two high school age boys. They were visiting America to spend time with family and just relax. The key word is that they were truly “relaxing.” As we enjoyed family dinners together, the extreme differences in American and Swedish politics, unions, tax structures, and other social welfare programs were very apparent. It made for some very lively conversation to say the least, which I enjoyed thoroughly. However, when we spoke about the various vacation norms in both countries, I felt that I had little to provide the conversation regarding the foreign concept of extended paid leaves. Well besides my numerous explosions of “Are you kidding me??!!” and “ That simply does not exist here!”

In Sweden, the government requires organizations to provide at least five weeks of paid vacation to all employees. According to my cousin, three of those five weeks must be taken consecutively, and the other two may be taken at any time. The idea being that at least once a year all people need to totally unwind and recharge their batteries before going back to being productive. I smiled with a twinge of jealously as I listened to my cousin and her husband recount some of their previous paid time off policies at work over the years. Immediately, they both remembered a “magical year” when they were both granted nine weeks of paid vacation. They told us about how they traveled through Europe that summer and shared memories of a lifetime with their children. Not only were they completely compensated during the time off, but they were also granted a weekly stipend. Are you kidding me?!!!! Yes, my smile was courteous, but I was flat out jealous. Would I ever in my American life be able to enjoy such an experience with my entire family without risking someone losing a job over the “experience?” Probably not, but that is OK. There are many other American experiences that I am proud to participate in everyday. At best, I believe some employers (mine included) would be family friendly enough to consider an extended unpaid leave of absence. I do wonder what would happen if I asked about the weekly stipend on top of being approved for an extended leave?

Well, in defense of our country, and my personal pride, I tried to come up with every argument to show that this approach to long vacations simply makes no sense at all. How could businesses operate efficiently and cost effectively? How can they manage staffing levels? Don’t you feel like it takes at least a month just to get your head back in the game and be productive? For most of these topics, their answers eliminated my concerns, and I felt convinced that workers truly do come back revived and ready to dig in even deeper upon return from a long vacation. Organizations, as they explained, simply plan around the leaves proactively, and employees seem more willing to carry a heavier workload for their co-workers than perhaps we do in the States. I am still perplexed as to how the gains in productivity outweigh the very real fixed costs. The question I asked last, “Are you worried about losing traction and not “getting ahead” at work when you are out of touch for so long?” Well, this is where the conversation moved back in the direction of our vastly different approaches to education, social welfare programs, taxes etc. With Sweden’s more “community centered” approach to all of the above, it seemed that no one, at the table anyway, was worried about the concept of “getting ahead” at work. I will try to steer clear of my views on the matter, but let’s just say that I still hold on strong to the idea of the American Dream, and I value a society where hard work can be rewarded. Now, the question for one to ponder is,

“Do you think you could work even harder and achieve more success if you knew you had a totally guilt free extended vacation waiting for you each year that you were REQUIRED to take?”

Interestingly, companies are starting to ask similar questions. Many in America, including some local and regional organizations that are rethinking traditional paid time off programs, are looking to much more robust programs that include ideas like unlimited PTO, extended leaves, sabbaticals, and more programs to attract and retain top talent in this very diverse workforce.

What are you currently doing to attract and retain top talent? Are your paid time off and holiday policies robust enough to provide valued employees with the work life balance needed for long-term retention?

For more information on this or other HR topics, please contact FGP HR Consulting directly at 864-553-7285 to set up some time with a certified HR consultant.

One of my favorite Marketing and Advertising professors at Clemson used to encourage our class to work on our Personal Brand. This professor even ends each e-mail with the same question; “How is your BRAND?”

As I grow professionally and become more involved in our community, I continue to learn that this concept is even bigger and more important than I could have imagined. It’s more than just representing yourself well in front of potential employers, team members and peers. Your personal brand tells the world who you are and what you represent, and it will be continually re-shaped throughout your career.

Some pointers for building your personal brand:

Self-reflect. What are your strengths and how can you begin to exercise these strengths in your job or community? What are you passionate about? What are some of your areas for improvement? How can you work on these areas to turn them into strengths? Understand the importance of consistency in building your brand. If you only talk the talk without actually walking the walk, you won’t have a positive impact.

Get feedback. Authentic and constructive feedback is a gift. Although self-reflection is very important, don’t forget that your brand is how you are viewed by others. We all have “blind spots,” so sometimes it takes an outside perspective to identify areas of strengths and weaknesses.

Be visible and engaged. If you’re going to build a successful reputation and brand, you must allow the world to see what you represent. Networking in the business community is a great way to meet and learn about others. Become an expert in your field by being published, joining organizations, blogging or speaking. Another productive and rewarding way to “put yourself out there” is by volunteering in your community.

Invest. Don’t be afraid to grow, even if that means you have to step out of the box to invest in your brand. Signing up for education courses or extracurricular activities will advance your areas of expertise as well as your network!

Have a vision. Do you know what your short term goals are? Do you have long term goals? If you want to be successful, focus on your short term goals first to continue to grow and shape your brand. Meet short term goals one step at a time in order to be successful in the long term.

As we work with customers on a daily basis we see that business has been picking up. People have been feeling better about where their organizations are and that things are trending in the right direction. Morale has been high and attitudes positive. Then, the May Jobs Report came out, revealing a rise in the Unemployment Rate and on that same day, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 275 points. These reports and financial markets/people’s reactions to the numbers remind us that we are still in a time of volatility and uncertainty. In this continued time of ambiguity, the question is, how does this impact your employees? Do people see what is going on and wonder what this means to them individually and if changes might affect them? Are you aware of actions you can take to combat these thoughts of worry and ambivalence?

We know that when morale is low in the workplace it directly affects productivity. With this in mind, it is even more important to continue to communicate with your employees during these times. A few starting points and reminders when it comes to organizational communication:

Encourage employees, and remind yourselves, to focus on what is actually in your control. You may not be able to control the economy, but you do have complete control over your job performance, interactions with your coworkers, and the customer experience. Battle against a negative attitude with hard work, positive interactions and great customer service!

Communicate important organizational information to employees. Where do you stand in relation to your goals for this year? What are you focusing on as a company? What are your quantitative goals for the month? Quarter? Year?

Highlight some “bright spots” for your company. Focus on where you are exceeding expectations as a company, in groups or divisions and individually. When your employees feel appreciated and confident in how you’re doing as a company, morale, and therefore productivity, will be high.

Communication should be a daily priority in the workplace and it doesn’t have to be extensive or formal. The most important thing to remember is to have leadership send a consistent and shared message. If we don’t communicate consistently, folks will begin to fill in their own blanks. We’ve found that our folks even prefer quick updates and “shout outs” to more detailed e-mails. You don’t have to fill up their inboxes to communicate effectively. Just don’t forget to do it!

Anyone who has ever had a boss knows that bosses aren’t perfect. But have you ever stopped to think about the part that you play in your working relationships and what you could do to improve them? The only person you control is you. The relationship between an employee and employer takes 200% effort and you control your 100%. We as employees can embrace the opportunity to step up and drive true collaboration and teamwork with our employers.

A great employer/employee relationship is based on:

Expectations

Alignment

Communication

Mutual expectations must be established from the beginning. Do you know what is expected of you? If your employer hasn’t clearly communicated everything they expect from you as an employee, it is your responsibility to ask. They may not realize that they have been unclear and will also appreciate your initiative. After all, how can you make sure you exceed their expectations and perform your job well if you don’t even know what that should look like? The concept is the same for your boss. If you haven’t informed them of what you need and expect from them in order to be successful, they won’t know when they aren’t meeting your needs. Often, someone’s lack of “mind-reading ability” is observed as them having ill intentions. Discussing mutual expectations from the start can help you to avoid an unpleasant experience.

Alignment of goals and expectations is a must when it comes to teamwork and true collaboration. The objective is to work together to produce the best results for you, your boss and your company. If you are unsure of your employer’s goals and your company’s goals, again, you only need ask. Seek to understand what all of these goals/results are and why they make sense, or don’t make sense, for everyone.

Finally, communication is the key to holding an employer/employee relationship together. Not only do you want to continually discuss expectations and goals, but it is also in your best interest for you and your boss to understand each others’ communication styles, strengths and weaknesses. Your employer will appreciate you asking them how they’d like to receive information and how often to update them. In return, you can tell them what kind of communication drives and encourages you best and also allows you to work efficiently and effectively.

Simply defined, culture is the collective behavior, values and attitudes across all employees. It is driven by employee interaction and shaped by each person on the team. Whether you are the CEO or in a temporary or temp-to-hire position, you have a unique impact on the organizational culture where you work.

In order to experience the greatest job satisfaction, we believe that your company should have a great culture and that you should be a good fit. A few tips in assessing your company’s culture and your fit:

Seek to understand the organization’s goals, behaviors, values, attitudes and norms. If you’re unsure of some of these things, ask! Great culture begins with trust, authentic communication and true collaboration.

Spend time in self-reflection to have a more clear understanding of your ideal personal interactions, behaviors, values and goals. Do your individual values align with your company’s culture?

Accept that you play a part in forming the culture and environment. How do your behaviors and interactions affect the culture in your organization?

Does your organization value and practice trust, communication and teamwork across the entire company? If so, then great! If you see a few areas for improvement, which is true for almost all companies, know that you play a part. Not only do you have the opportunity to begin discussion around culture, goals and employee interaction, but you also affect the culture through your own actions and behaviors. Even building a great culture is a team effort.

As we learn about the importance of organizational culture, let’s look at the different strategies in hiring: Temporary-to-Hire Positions and Permanent Positions. Although companies are beginning to grow again and hire new employees, we are now accustomed and trained to do more with less, which is great but also means it is even more important that we “put the best people on the field.” Technical skills, work ethic, attitude and cultural fit are all equally important when you’re trying to support a lean and flexible workforce.

A great way to confirm that you’ve got the right person for a position is through extending their interview process by using temporary or temporary-to-hire staffing services. Having a potential employee come in on a temp-to-hire basis provides you with an opportunity to assess their fit for a position and your company while actually seeing them in action. As a hiring manager, the chance to further evaluate an employee’s cultural and personality fit along with their work ethic, skills and growth potential is invaluable. People are a company’s greatest investment, and we wouldn’t want our clients investing in someone who isn’t going to exceed expectations and be committed.

Now that companies are hiring more, the candidate market is more active than it has been over the past few years. The disadvantage to having temp-to-hire employees is that they are usually unemployed their ultimate objective is to find a full-time, permanent position. This means until they find permanent employment they will continue to look and as a result, could receive another permanent offer at any time. It is for this reason that we encourage clients to convert their temporary positions to full-time when it’s decided that they are the right fit. It is a win-win for the employee and company.

Another means to hire a great candidate is to make them an initial permanent offer. At FGP, our recruiters work hard to find and present the best candidates to our clients. When recruiting for a permanent position, not only can we more easily secure a qualified candidate, but we can also look at all audiences; not just the unemployed.

Your goal is to find great people and depending on your business and your hiring needs, you may decide it’s best to use temp-to-hire, permanent or a combination of both! If you are in doubt of which route will work best for you, our Business Development Professionals and Recruiters will be more than happy to help you strategize and decide on the best approach.

Over the past few months we’ve explored the concept of Organizational Culture in the workplace; why it’s important and how to understand the culture in your organization. We feel that the next step is to discuss how to build and support a great culture by implementing what we’ve learned throughout this series. It’s time to take action!

To build a great culture, begin by helping each employee understand and become aware of their individual impact. Each person on the team must believe that the culture is driven by their interactions with each other and is shaped by each person on the team, regardless of their position or level. From there, spend time with employees to begin discussions that will lead to self-reflection and, eventually, a better understanding of their unique influence on the collective behavior, values and attitudes in the company. Ask questions like “What part do you play in our company?” and “What should we expect from your interactions with the team?”

From here, it is very important to discuss and regularly communicate the cultural norms and values that your company will embrace. Great culture begins with trust, authentic communication and true collaboration. Not only do you want to communicate these norms and encourage discussion around them, but it’s also important to “lead by example” and practice them yourself. Educate new team members so the goal for your organizational culture is stunningly clear from the start. When employees understand their impact as well as where you’re going as a team, everyone can work collectively toward building a great culture, an enjoyable work environment and significant business results!

Lao-tzu, of course, did not know how prophetic his words were to become, nor did he realize how much research, energy, and time would be dedicated to exploring the concept of leadership. In ancient times, it appeared that leadership was inherited because strong social class barriers made it practically impossible for just anyone to become a leader. As class barriers crumbled, it became obvious that leaders were coming from all walks of life, and the concept of leadership was much more complex than being born with the right genes or into the proper families.

The word “leadership” did not appear in the English language until the early 1800’s. For the next century, the concept of leadership was basically ignored, focusing instead on the concept of management due to the industrial revolution. But following WWII, researchers and social scientists were busy at work and trying to make up for lost time by finding out everything they could about leadership: how people become leaders, how leaders acquire followers, how effective leaders affect groups, and the qualities of an effective leader.

Fortunately, the thousands of studies have taken the mystery out of the concept of “leadership” and have helped to determine that great leaders ARE made, and not necessarily born. The studies have also indicated that there is a definite distinction between management and leadership, including the differences of skills involved with both concepts.

“Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things.”

Peter Drucker

Management is defined as the administrative ordering of activities – getting things done through the efforts of people. If this definition includes strategic planning, clear organization charts, frequent reports, budgeting, and regular evaluations of performance against objectives, then many organizations are well managed. And organizations NEED to be well managed in order to survive.

But organizations also need to be led. According to renowned author Stephen Covey, “Management is a bottom line focus: How can I best accomplish certain things? Leadership deals with the top line: What are the things I want to accomplish?” Efficient management without effective leadership is like straightening deck chairs on the Titanic. Leadership provides visionary inspiration, motivation, and direction-setting. Leadership generates an emotional connection between the leader and those being led. Leadership attracts people and motivates them toward a common goal.

In your organization, do your leaders manage or lead? Do they know how to inspire the passion in employees and make work meaningful for them? At FGP HR Consulting, we can work with your leadership team to develop and grow their skills in both management AND leadership. Our team of experienced and certified HR professionals can assess your leadership team’s capabilities against your organization’s vision and key business drivers. We will work with you to maximize your leaders' strengths to take your organization to the next level. Contact Sara Davis at 864-553-7237 or sdavis@fgp.com to speak with one of our HR Consultants. We would love nothing more than to support you in building a great company!

Now that we know what culture is and why it’s so important to every business, what do we do about it? First, we must know that culture is affected and owned by every individual in the organization. Each associate within the company makes their own unique contribution to the culture. In order to build, maintain or change your organization’s culture, you must begin by assessing and understanding it. After understanding your current organizational culture, you can begin to decide where you actually want it to be.

There are many things you can do from a leadership perspective to assess your company’s culture. The most simple and practical ways to assess the culture of your organization are to observe and listen. Look around. Are team members engaged? Do they get along and support each others’ success? Do folks seem happy? Is production high? Do you have low turnover? Is it a customary practice to ask employees for feedback on current procedures and find out what they need to be successful? This will give you valuable information as well as show your employees that you care about them and their success. Our HR Consultants at FGP would be more than happy to offer assistance and advice on people strategy when you assess your organization’s culture.

Although the culture of your organization is affected by each individual, the vision and values are decided and implemented from the top. Do you have company values that are communicated in writing and collaboratively developed by people on the team? Is there a clear vision of where the company is headed and how it will get there? These are important questions to ask. As you answer them, think about how your culture supports the answers. When your employees begin to work in sync toward and have stunning clarity around the shared vision and values of the organization, you will begin to see great things happen and most importantly, improved business results.

Stay tuned for our next newsletter where we will visit how you can contribute to building a great culture as well as how to effectively manage and change it!

It’s a new era in the world of employment with methods and trends surfacing when it comes to hiring. We are finding that more and more companies choose temporary to hire positions as a way to bring new members into the organization. It gives hiring managers the ability to further assess your fit for a position as well as your fit in the organizational culture and your potential for growth. Isn’t that a great deal for companies who are looking for top talent?

What you might not realize is that it’s a great opportunity for you as well! We want you to succeed in your career goals and, therefore, believe that the greatest advice we can give is to treat this time as an “Extended Interview” for yourself as well as for your employer.

We aren’t all rock stars when it comes to interviewing, especially initial interviews, and hiring managers realize that. Working a temp-to-hire position allows you to show a potential employer that you’re capable of performing the job and that you will exceed expectations. When a company hires you permanently after you’ve completed a temporary assignment for them, they are able to have complete confidence that you are the person for the job.

If you’ve worked in different companies before, you understand the importance of job satisfaction and being in an enjoyable work environment. You will have the greatest job satisfaction when you enjoy your work and dedicate your time to an organization that values your skills, work ethic and personality. When working a temporary position, ask yourself a few questions: Do I enjoy my interactions with others in the organization? Do I find satisfaction in the completion of my tasks? Can I see myself succeeding and furthering my career here?

We touched earlier on how temporary positions can be valuable career tools, but it’s so important to remember that it’s also a way to show potential employers that you’re a great person who will be successful in their organization!

Almost all of us have experienced it. That unexpected twinge of fear that surfaces shortly after you schedule an interview. The sheer thrill of “getting your foot in the door” is replaced inevitably by some other unsettling emotion, trumping the logical side of your brain that keeps reminding—you are ready for this.

It’s in those unsuspecting moments before the interview that self doubt and insecurity creep up and show themselves. “What if they reject me?”, “What if I don’t know the best answer?”, “I don’t think my nerves can withstand an interview panel.”

Must these unwanted feelings follow you around like an incessant cloud of dreaded anticipation? That’s entirely up to you.

If given the opportunity, fear can be healthy and a catalyst towards positive action. Use your nervous energy to prepare yourself for potential interview questions and situations. As humans, we will always fear rejection and desire acceptance. So why not allow yourself to feel vulnerable and get used to feeling uncomfortable by asking a family member or friend to give you a mock interview and critique your performance?

Remember, every interview is a stepping stone that leaves you better prepared for the next interview and one step closer to your new job. So embrace fear. Transform your nervous energy into positive anticipation guided by preparation. Sure, you may walk into that company lobby with a racing pulse and a sweaty hand or two. But of this you can be sure,

Whether you have been laid off, you’re relocating to the area, graduating from college or just looking for a new job opportunity, job searching can be difficult. We have found that with our clients and even most companies, "uncertainty" is the deterrent to most of their current hiring decisions. A new trend in hiring is using temporary or contract employees as a method of bringing new talent to the team.

We find that many people in the job market have a negative—but incorrect—view when it comes to the term "temporary position." Consider the following positives:

1. Opportunity to Gain Experience and Skills: Working a temporary position demonstrates to your potential employer that you are a person who values productivity and hard work. Many people focus all of their job search efforts solely on finding a new, long-term job instead of strengthening their resume and potentially finding a permanent position through temporary work. In fact, many temporary positions provide on-the-job training which enables you to develop new skills and become more marketable. In many cases, temporary positions allow employers to further assess your skills, work ethic and cultural fit to help them make a decision about bringing you onto the team permanently.

2. Networking: While working a temporary position, especially in your particular industry, you have an invaluable opportunity to meet and build relationships with people who may be able to help with business or job opportunities in the future.

3. Income: If you are trying to get the bills paid and stay afloat while job searching, it’s probably a good idea to work! As you are looking for a long term opportunity, you can still have an income by working temporary positions.

4. Performance Creates Opportunity: This is one of our favorite sayings among the recruiters at FGP because we have seen so many people find long-term and career opportunities from temporary positions. Any time you work for a company, people are watching you and making mental notes about your knowledge, skills, personality, friendliness, character, diligence, and behavior. You can almost view temporary work as an extended interview!

5. Career Knowledge: Working as a temporary employee allows you to learn more about a particular industry as well as what it means to be a cultural fit and enjoy your work. You have the opportunity to explore different companies as well as careers and learn what is important to you. Entering a company in a temporary position provides you with much greater insight than a typical applicant and allows you to determine if it would be a viable long term interest for you.

So next time you are offered a temporary position during your job search, don’t think of it negatively or as a "last resort". Take advantage of the opportunity to further your experience, network and knowledge!

After facilitating a recent performance review debriefing session, I realized that unintentionally, in my effort to create the “perfect process”, my overall message to the aforementioned leadership team had been diluted. The group had missed grasping the fundamental understanding of what performance management really is (with performance reviews being only one tool in the toolkit). Through this event, and others like it, I realize there is still a need to re-emphasize what performance management really is and what it is not.

Performance management, when broken down to its simplest form, is consistent authentic communication between the employee and the manager. This communication begins with the talent acquisition or recruiting process and continues throughout the employee’s time with the organization.

This cycle of “Authentic Communication” between hiring manger and employee can be broken down into four clear areas that can then be sub-categorized into numerous related processes, each with associated HR tools, best practices, processes and forms. The four main areas include 1.) Setting Clear Expectations 2.) Giving and Receiving Feedback 3.) Rewarding Positive Results and/or Behavior 4.) Redirecting Undesired Results and/or Behaviors. The below list includes sub-categories that are merely a sampling of what falls into each of the four main areas of authentic communication during an employee life cycle.

Setting clear expectations

– Talent Acquisition or Recruiting Process

– Job Descriptions

– On-Boarding Experience

– SMART goals

– Training

Giving and Receiving Feedback

– Formal Performance Reviews

– Informal Coaching and Feedback Sessions

– Development Plans

Rewarding Positive Results and/or Behaviors

– Promotions

– Compensation Reviews and Increases

– Succession Planning

– Recognition Programs

– Training

Redirectingundesired results and/or Behaviors

– Discipline

– Training

– Exiting or terminations

– Outplacement Programs

– Severances

So why do HR “partners” create such a plethora of forms to add to leadership’s workload? Well, it is truly with the best intentions that we develop forms, templates, processes and the like around the authentic communication process. Forms typically help ensure that the compliance related elements are not lost during the shuffle of daily operations. In addition, by standardizing processes and forms, many best practices are incorporated in as gentle reminders to overstretched managers. These forms are created so that the intentions to have consistent authentic communication are backed up by a framework to support the effort and make it a reality.

However, at the end of the day, if you as a leader are truly having genuine and straightforward conversations with employees to set clear expectations on job performance, to redirect or at times discipline employees in a timely manner when they get off track, to reward desired behaviors and to exit employees when results and or behavior no longer match the needs of the company, and if you are documenting all of this progress in your own manner consistently for all employees, then you have truly embraced the concept that “It Is Not About The Forms”. There should be no absolute need for the forms; the forms should be a tool to make the process easier and more consistent. Without any forms and without any HR support, leaders are totally capable of having and documenting all of the necessary conversations for a healthy employee life cycle on their own using simply pen and paper.

At times, even the best of forms can actually do more harm than good when used as a crutch or as an excuse to treat the authentic conversation process as a quick exercise of “checking it off on the list”. This can be the case with new leaders as well as with experienced managers who do not understand the power behind using authentic communication as the basis for employment relationships.

Performance management is consistent authentic communication between the employee and the manager and can be as easy as it sounds (although some conversations are tougher than others and do require more prep work). Performance management is not about the forms used to support the process.

So, I challenge each of you reading this article to really ask yourselves how you use the forms you are given and think about the impact of your answer carefully. Do you use them because HR told you to use them? Do you do it because you are afraid that not doing so may create legal risk? Do you properly document all conversations and HR related processes in your own manner without using forms? Or, do you use forms and other tools appropriately to assist in driving direction into meaningful and real conversations that should be occurring throughout the employee life cycle?

If you would like to talk about the what, when, how, and most importantly, the WHY behind using HR tools, forms, and processes, our FGP HR Consulting team would be more than happy to customize an approach that works for you and your organization. We would be thrilled to explain the true meaning of performance management to help you realize that it reallyisn’t about the HR forms at all.

As we were putting together our newsletter this month, we began with some topics focused on practical ways to increase employee happiness. Then we asked ourselves, “Why do organizations (including FGP) focus so much on employee happiness and satisfaction? Does it really matter?” Studies show that higher employee morale and job satisfaction lead to better business results. Well, that answered our first question, so we went on to ask, “What has the biggest effect on employee morale?” Working with companies from small businesses to the Fortune 100, at FGP we have found that the culture of organizations greatly affects employee morale and, ultimately, directly impacts business results and productivity.

Culture is frequently discussed in the corporate world, but what does it really mean? Simply defined, it is the collective behavior, values and attitudes across all employees. It is driven through employee interaction and shaped by each person on the team regardless of their position or level. Individual personalities and experiences are referred to as “drivers” because they steer the culture and environment in the workplace. For example, if people in the organization are very outgoing, the culture is likely to be open and sociable.

Have you ever worked in or with a company that had a poor organizational culture but was also wildly successful? Probably not! When we look at very successful companies like Google and Zappos.com (who both show up on Fortune Magazine’s 100 Best Companies to Work For) we notice a common theme: their employees rave about the culture of their organization and the companies are viewed as industry leaders. Do you want to improve the results of your company or department? If you do, a good place to start is by improving the culture.

It’s mid March and the warmer temperatures and longer days are tempting us to get out of the office and into the sun! As employers, how do you combat this yearly epidemic known as “Spring Fever”? Might there even be opportunities to improve employee morale and production during this time?

By taking some proactive steps during the spring and summer months, you can build a more enjoyable work environment, resulting in increased employee happiness and loyalty. When your workforce is happy, production will be high and turnover will be low.

Some companies offer more flexible schedules during the spring and summer months by offering compressed work schedules and/or flextime. This provides employees with the option to avoid traffic on their commute to work, work around their family’s activities and/or work extra hours during the beginning of the week resulting in a free Friday afternoon or day off!

The spring is the perfect season to set new goals and reward your employees for their hard work and performance. When employees are preoccupied with thoughts of the beach and outdoors, why not give them something else to anticipate and work towards? Allow employees to set new goals and provide enticing rewards such as time off or outdoor time during the week.

The warmer weather provides a great opportunity to plan a company “outing” like playing a game of dodgeball, attending an athletic event or having an office cookout. At FGP, we enjoy having cookouts in the Fall and kickball games in the spring to enjoy some healthy competition and get to know each other outside of the office. Come April, all of the FGPers will split up by divisions, close the office a little early and head out to the kickball fields for some guaranteed fun and laughter!

Don't be afraid to get creative and have some fun! How will you take advantage of “Spring Fever” this year?

Steve Jobs was a man who loved his job 100% of the time, even on the rough days. He spent the majority of his life indulged in work that in turn produced a legacy of simple, elegant designs that changed the world of technology forever. Undoubtedly, having the drive and passion for his work that so many people lack is what made him so successful.

We all have days where we dislike our job; that’s inevitable. We spend more time in our office than we do at home. So, shouldn’t our work be enjoyable? Something we’re passionate about; something we were born to do? What if Steve Jobs had decided to own a restaurant instead of pursue a career as an innovator? The world as we know it would be a completely different place. A lack of passion in a job is a common occurrence that some of us may not realize could hinder our performance, ultimately hurting our chances of success in the long run.

U.S. News & World Report recently unveiled an article about the success that results from people loving what they do for a living. The article goes into detail about what can happen when people love what they do for a living:

They Try Harder
When people find that they truly love their work, they often try harder because they have enthusiasm for the task at hand. “You do the work and that energizes you, which in turn means that you have more energy to put into doing the work. It keeps feeding itself like a perpetual motion machine,” states the article. It’s true. If someone feels that they’ve accomplished something that has meaning, they’ll want to work harder to do it again.

You did it! You just hired the perfect person for your company. Not only are they a great cultural fit, but they also have the perfect skill set for your company’s open position. They have top notch experience, a positive attitude, dedication, integrity, and they are business savvy – everything you've been looking for. As a manager, one of your main goals is to help your company succeed by hiring the best possible employees – but how do you make sure your top talent stays put?

You need to work on retaining your top talent starting from day one. When your new employee comes into the office for their first day, make them feel welcome by a simple welcome gift or by treating them to lunch. Positive first impressions go a long way. Once the new employee is settled into their role, besure to check up on them periodically. Schedule meetings every few months to discuss specific and intentional questions and concerns with them. Do they understand their position? Do they have a grasp of their goals? And most importantly, are they enjoying it? Employees need to feel valued and they need to know that their employer is willing to invest in their success and future.

“People don’t leave their organizations, theyleave their leaders.” How many times have you heard this over the course of your professional experience? Studies and research have proven that this statement is trite but true...to a point. Insert the word “Talented” before the word “People” and you have a revised statement that is perhaps even more critical for the future of your organization… “Talented people don’t leave their organizations, they leave their leaders.”

Have you ever had one of your talented leaders or employees appear in your office one morning and say to you, “Do you have a couple of minutes?” Then they proceed to tell you that they are giving you their notice and hand you their resignation letter. The job, they explain, has greater pay, benefits, is a promotion, an opportunity that they couldn’t refuse. They leave your office and leave you behind sitting in your chair in a daze, wondering what went wrong and asking yourself, “Why is Bob REALLY leaving? Is it something I did? I said? Can I do something to make him stay? That company has NOTHING over ours. And WHY is Bob leaving...I sure wish it was Billy instead of Bob!”

Have you ever found yourself overly concerned about what your coworkers, supervisors and/or direct reports think of you? Do you allow others’ perceptions of you to cause you stress and anxiety in the workplace? Perception is a very important leadership tool that, when used correctly, can greatly impact your effectiveness as a leader.

One of Dictionary.com’s definitions of perception is, “Immediate or intuitive recognition or appreciation, as of moral, psychological, or aesthetic qualities.” People’s perceptions belong to them. They own them. Although we cannot control the perception or recognition of others, we can control how we react to, receive, and move forward with this information.

FGP Intl. was proud to be a part of the 2011 United Way Campaign to help support the needs of others in the Greenville community. The UW Campaign ended with a new record high in giving for the community at more than $15.2 million dollars donated.

Members of the FGP Intl. team attended the United Way Awards Celebration luncheon on Thursday, January 26th, 2012 where FGP was awarded The Chairman's Award as well as the Campaign Award of Excellence. Both awards were based on the following criteria:

When it comes to defining what makes a company successful, most companies look at their bottom line return on investment (ROI) as an indicator. Many other businesses understand that keeping their employees happy and maintaining a positive work environment are the keys to their longevity.

Kansas State University recently conducted a study to confirm that happy workers are in fact, more productive workers. The study found that employees who were "psychologically distressed" actually cost an organization $75 per week per person in lost productivity.

Other findings from the study:

Content employees tend to find solutions to a problem rather than complain about it.

Happy workers have more energy and are more motivated.

Workers who are less stressed tend to take less sick days.

Workers who like their jobs are more confident and tend to make less mistakes.

If you've recently been displaced and/or are setting out on your first job search, you may need to take a deep breath to figure out the best way to approach your new hunt. Because many managers understand the difficulties job seekers face in today's competitive marketplace, many choose to offer outplacement services to help you optimize your strategy for finding the best possible position.

For those who are not offered such services, you may have to take matters into your own hands. Of course, one of the first things you will need to do to prepare for your job search is update your resume. If you haven't had to touch your resume in a while, you should know that some of the rules have changed regarding formatting and phrasing.

As the New Year commences, it’s time for managers to look closely at their company and decide what changes need to be made for 2012. This year is going to be different. The nation is transitioning into a post-recessionary economy and managers are going to be faced with the challenge to not only hire the best people possible, but to retain those people as well. So, how can your company be different in 2012? What are some initiatives your company can implement that will set it apart from the others?

Staff Development
Human resource managers need to make sure that there are plenty of pinch hitters waiting on the bench. It's important for the HR department to identify an employee's potential and help nurture it to its capacity. Companies need to offer mentoring programs along with extra training and adult education to help bring out the best in all employees.

Internal Communications
Now is a good time for companies to step up their social media and internal communications departments. HR managers may want to develop a social media outreach initiative to help workers and customers stay on top of the latest business and employee news by posting updates, blogs and special offerings on the company's website and other social media pages.

An article in Time Magazine recently mentioned that one of the top trends of 2012 will be "workplace flexibility". This trend recently took center stage when a number of large companies began announcing that they were adding vacations to the list of perks that employees can choose from - giving workers control over their allotted time off.

While many companies are still leery of implementing a flexible workplace policy for fear that employees will abuse their new found privileges, the old school mentality that people work eight hours a day for 40 hours a week is changing. Many businesses now realize that the idea of giving workers more freedom does have its advantages and can lead to a happier corporate environment, increase job satisfaction and help reduce stress.

A recent Brigham Young University study found that when participants were able to work from their homes and set their own hours, they could work 57 hours before one quarter of them began experiencing stress over work/life balance. In contrast, those who worked set hours in offices could only work 38 hours before experiencing the same amount of work/life stress.

Traditional flextime, which has been around for decades, is simply the policy that gives workers the option to choose when to start and stop their workday within a company's conventional schedule. With advances in technology over the years, traditional flextime has come to mean that workers can also pick which days they will telecommute and which days they will physically be at the office.

As many companies switch from traditional flextime to overall workplace flexibility, so too is the concept of tracking hours and days changing to become what IBM calls a "results only environment." The notion that workers have more control over their work day as long as their assignments are completed on time is another way employees can take responsibility over their work and personal lives.

"It blows my mind," says Dan Martell, career coach, "when I meet entrepreneurs who get advice for major decisions from someone who hasn’t achieved success in the area they’re seeking to conquer (ex: parents, friends, business partner). A mentor is someone who’s been there, done that, and is willing to help you out. It’s that simple."

Mentoring has become a buzzword in our corporate culture. I know for me personally, my life has been irrevocably changedby personal and professional mentors who have taken the time to sit down and give me solid advice. But now that I’m in a position where other, younger folks are asking me for my advice, I realize what a sacrifice that was and how much time these people have invested in me. Greg Aiken, Marketing Communications Manager, Windstream Communicationsis on the United Way YP Mentor of the Year committee and he shared the following thoughts:

I recently had the opportunity to review nominations for the United Way’s Mentor of the Year,which they’ll announce in January 2012. While each nomination was unique, they all shared similar qualities. As I combed through the nominations, the same phrases and descriptions continued to appear: “I wouldn’t be what I am today,” “sounding board,” “life-changing,” and “well-rounded in career and family.” All of these nominations have a similar premise: a genuine concern for those around you. It’s the Golden Rule 2.0: Treat others as you’d like to be treated and take an active interest in where their lives are headed.

It’s nearly the middle of November, which means the holidays are almost upon us. In a little under two weeks, employees will be taking off for Thanksgiving. And once Black Friday hits, employees are easily distracted by everything from holiday decorating to Christmas shopping to parties. The holidays have stretched to a five or six-week long stint beginning in a few weeks. And even worse, a survey in 2010 “revealed that 46% of Americans plan to complete their holiday shopping during work hours-either through online shopping, taking sick days, or cutting out a little early.” To be sure, building a workplace of choice means that holiday activities are permitted and even encouraged. No one wants to work for an Ebenezer Scrooge.

But business needs don’t stop just because it’s the holidays. Margins must be met and profits must be made. So how do you as an organization keep your employees focused and profitable during the holiday season?

With the recent announcement of the iCloud by Apple, we can be sure that cloud computing is here to stay. And for the most part, this is good news for the IT industry. According to a recent report from BDO USA, LLP, companies have ramped up the hiring of IT workers in order to ensure that their businesses are ahead of the curve in the digital age. The report found that 46 percent of technology companies are planning to increase their staff in this year alone, as there is a greater demand for their expertise in areas such as cloud computing.

The report also found that chief financial officers (CFOs) are reportedly using cloud computing in order to improve business. "Technology companies have switched gears from survival to growth mode," said Hank Galligan, leader in the Technology and Life Sciences Practice at BDO USA, LLP. "The flexibility and scalability of cloud computing created cost-effective infrastructures that allowed adopters to weather the recession and emerge ahead of the curve."

The changes in cloud computing (and the demand for it by executives) opens up tremendous opportunities for IT staff.

Social media can no longer be ignored. It is not a fad – it’s a revolution (see this link for a fascinating video). One statistic: Facebook tops Google for weekly traffic in the U.S. Or another—it took TV 13 years to reach 50 million users. Facebook added over 200 million in less than a year. As proactive leaders of our organizations, we cannot ignore the impact of social media on our employees and reputation—both good and bad.

Having a policy in place is essential for protecting your company and your employees. Without a policy in place, social media can become a huge detriment to your organization. For example, Foxtel CIO Robyn Elliot recommends, "Search for your organization on Twitter and see what's going on. You'll never know who those people are but they're talking about your company. You should pick up patterns from this and take action to fix those problems. People are talking about it for a reason.”

But not only is a social media policy important for the management of your organization’s reputation, it also provides you protection against employees who unwisely post on Facebook or Twitter. Social media poses an entire new field of legal questions and employers would be wise to consider (with counsel) what they can and cannot prohibit. And even with the policy, employers must be careful how they handle negativity on social media. Lexology reports that “the NLRB’s Buffalo, NY regional office has issued a complaint against Hispanics United of Buffalo Inc. (HUB), a New York nonprofit agency. The complaint alleges that the employer fired five employees because they complained about working conditions on Facebook.”

As technology becomes more a part of the workplace than ever before, IT employees are expected to do more than just write code or answer help desk calls. When looking for a new member of their IT team, many of our clients specifically request certain social and leadership skills. But according to a survey by the CIO Executive Council, leadership development in the IT department is lacking. The survey found that only 26% of respondents felt that their companies fostered conflict management skills in IT employees, while just 17% felt their companies addressed the need for political savvy in their IT employees.

What’s the problem with this? Without strong leadership in the IT department, the CIO is likely left working primarily in reactive mode, having to spend his or her time dealing with issues that arise daily, rather than being able to work strategically towards a long-term vision. Karen Rubenstrunk, author of “The CIO Edge: Seven Leadership Skills You Need to Drive Results,” says that this reactive mode of functioning can create a “downward cycle,” where opportunities for leadership development are continually overlooked. “Developing strong leaders under the CIO frees the CIO to work more strategically with other executives,” she says. “You get to do things you signed up to do as a CIO.”

Helping to turn good IT managers into great IT leaders takes time, but is well worth the effort. CIO Magazine’s “Secrets to Building a Deeper Bench” profiles some of the companies that are most effectively working with their IT staff to build strong leaders. Some of their CIOs’ advice includes: offer a personal touch through one-on-one meetings with potential leaders; initiate cross-department training, so IT staff and staff in other departments can learn more about how the company works as a whole; and offering developmental assignments, such as performing due diligence or researching a new tech initiative, to staff in order to help them develop brand new skills.

Here's a great example that CIO Magazine gives: Cora Carmody, CIO of Jacobs, a $10 billion engineering-services firm "approaches leadership development both formally and informally. For example, she emails coffee-talk questions to her global staff every two weeks, aiming to spark conversation on topics from world views to personal dreams. The idea is to build bridges by getting to know people. One recent question: What would you try if you could not fail? She challenged her leaders to share their answers with two to six others, then she facilitated discussion. Feedback she received showed that people talked about personal and professional aspirations, including how to help others achieve theirs. She feels connecting with staff on a human level is one of the most effective management tools a CIO can use."

Is your organization giving IT staff the opportunities necessary to develop new leaders?

“What is this world coming to?” is a phrase you probably often hear uttered from parents or older friends. “Kids” like Mark Zuckerburg are running multi-billion dollar companies. For the first time in American history, there are four very different generations working together. It is not uncommon to find sixty-year-olds working beside iPhone-toting, Tweeting, Facebook-ing twenty-two-year olds. Each age group brings its own ideologies, its own technologies (or lack thereof), and its own way of doing things to the workplace with them. As a manager, how do you keep so many different types of people happy?

Let’s begin with some definitions.

First, there is “The Silent Generation.” This group is comprised of people born between 1925-1942. They value respect to authority, loyalty, and getting the job done. You will often see members of this generation staying at one place for their entire career.

For many workers displaced during the recent economic downturn, finding temporary employment was a good way to stay in the job market and bring in some much needed income. To a good friend of mine’s husband who was laid off last year, landing a three-month contract was a godsend, not to mention the fact that it helped them keep up with their mortgage payments.

Now, it appears as if more workers are finding that temporary employment can be a long-term gig.

Although it does appear as if the country is bouncing back from down times, let's face it, it's not going to happen overnight. Many companies are still choosing to go down the temporary route to help rein in budget and healthcare costs. Employers also don't have a crystal ball to look into the future to see exactly when the upswing will be in full force.

As many companies continue to hire temporary workers, it's imperative that you make the most out of your temporary assignment in order to leave a good impression and increase your chances of being hired for a permanent full-time position.

While some people are still a little hesitant to take a temporary assignment, a recent study found that more than half of Americans would rather work a temp job than have no job at all.

All too often, however, people enter a temporary or contract job with the idea that it will just serve as a way to get by until a more serious offer comes along. It doesn't have to be the case if you enter with the attitude that you will be learning new skills while at the same time making important industry contacts.

So, what are some things you can do to make sure you are getting the most out of your temporary assignment?

Since its inception, the sandwich has remained a constant cuisine of choice in multiple cultures. The range is vast: burger, sub, taco, falafel, ice cream, or the good old fashioned peanut butter and jelly. Sandwiches are popular across the globe – from an In-n-Out burger in California to a Panini in Italy. However, there is one “slice” of any sandwich that remains constant regardless of the disparity between the different genres of delectable delights: they are all customizable.

This is the aspect we truly love about sandwiches, isn’t it? The fact is that the word “sandwich” can encompass any number of things. In reality, you could put virtually any ingredient on some form of bread and call the food (assuming it remains edible) a sandwich. Sandwiches are what we want them to be and no one can tell us otherwise.

So how can we leverage this cultural mindset to our advantage as business people seeking to satisfy our clientele?

Our goal must be to please the needs of our clients (internally and externally) down to every drop of mustard or slice of tomato. Each client is an individual and unique case that must be handled and cared for with the highest possible regard. Realistically, this will look slightly different for every organization. The variables including size of staff, number of clients, and industry of work will influence your ability and strategy in customizing your client care. However, some things can serve as principles and guidelines to help engage your clients and meet their needs where they are. For the purposes of this article, we will focus primarily on internal clients or employees. How can YOU serve YOUR employees?

Understand that the success of your company rises and falls on having Great People. Here at FGP we make it a goal to educate our clients that “although processes, systems, and strategies are necessary, it is ultimately the quality of the people who work for you that will bring value to your organization.” This mindset will affect every niche of your business from your hiring practices to your daily operations.

Make your employees stakeholders in your organization. I’m not strictly speaking about financial investment, but also in the ideology of your team. Create a company culture that requires its members to “buy in” to an idea. Communicate that idea regularly to your personnel and set it as a common goal for your team. For FGP, I think that goal can be summarized as “demonstrating a dedicated client focus…and living with a passion for winning.” That is the heartbeat that drives our organization. We love our clients, and we want to win. What is yours?

Practically, get your employees involved in as many decision making opportunities as possible. Big or small, these exercises will prove your commitment to them as individuals and to the success of your organization. For small companies, this may mean holding company wide meetings regularly and designating a time for idea generating and venting frustrations. Bigger companies may want to invest in a corporate trainer or employee relations representative to monitor the pulse of the company and continue the drive toward excellence.

It is impossible to build a great sandwich without great ingredients. In my hometown of Philadelphia, the cheese steak reigns as king of all sandwiches. Although many shops claim to have “the best” there are few that could legitimately claim the title. My grandfather owned a cheese steak shop for many years called, “Ernie’s Steaks.” When I asked him how he remained successful throughout the years, his reply was simple, “It was easy. We had the best bread and steak so we made the best sandwiches.” What a beautifully simple outlook towards success. We would benefit to take a similar approach in our organizations today.

Out of all the challenges facing HR managers, none can be so uncomfortable as the internal candidate interview. Many managers conduct the interview out of common courtesy, knowing perhaps that the colleague really isn't qualified for the job. The process can leave you in the awkward position of dealing with that worker in the future.

Bloomberg Businessweek, however, argues that even if there's only a slight chance that you'll wind up choosing the internal candidate, you should do everything in your power to conduct a meaningful and productive interview.

One of the most cost-effective things a company can do is to actually hire from within, so don't disregard internal candidates right away. Of course, make sure that you do know whether their qualifications stack up in order to make sure you're not wasting anyone's valuable time.

Once you've evaluated their qualifications, you should head into the internal candidate interview prepared in the same way they would be for any other potential employee. It's important that your colleague recognizes that you have done all you can to be prepared and unbiased.

"Think about just how closely internal candidates stack up," recommends Bloomberg Businessweek. "If they're borderline, don't dismiss them immediately. Give them an assignment to test their abilities and (more important) commitment. Distribute their resumés to other stakeholders as well; they may have views that differ from yours. Bottom line: Your internal candidates are likely going above and beyond their current roles. Return the favor."

According to Peter Cappelli, professor of management and the director of HR at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School, one of the most important things you can do is ask your candidate why they are interested in the job. Knowing that the co-worker may have the inside scoop on the position, it's also important for you to ask them if they understand what exactly will be expected of them in their new role.

After the interview, if you know the internal candidate is not in the running, you still need to make sure you follow through with the process. It's always better that your co-worker hear the news from you than through the company grapevine. It also will give you the chance to sit down with them talk about what they can do to gain the experience necessary to move into the position. You may also be able to suggest alternative jobs within the company that may better suit their skill skill set. It's also a good way to turn a negative situation into a positive one.

As you go through the internal candidate's qualifications after rejection, you may also be able to refer them to a possible mentor or supervisor who can help them prepare for the next job opening. Again, it's another way you can turn the experience into a win-win.

How many times have you heard "oh no, not another meeting" echoing through the halls of your company? As many executives and managers know, a meeting can be a great organizational tool, but all too often it results in more meetings--and no time to actually do your work.

What can you do to make sure your meeting is time well spent? A recent Harvard Business Review article by Peter Bergman sheds some light on what you can do to ensure your meeting is a productive one.

According to Bergman, too many workers become disengaged while sitting in on a session, and one of the best ways to ensure that your audience will not be focused is to start off with a PowerPoint presentation.

This may be the complete opposite of how you have been looking at these meetings, since you might think a nice fancy PowerPoint presentation will be a great way to keep colleagues interested. Not so, argued Bergman, who said that the problem with these types of presentations is that workers quickly tune out because they have no active role in the discussion.

Bergman found that after many years of research, meetings that were centered around a PowerPoint presentation failed because they only focused on problems or questions, rather than encouraging dialogue for problem solving.

Instead, why not try something totally different?

If it is a semi-annual company meeting, begin by asking team members for feedback. Or have them "check in" with a one-word description of how they are feeling at that point. Bergman suggests that before a meeting, have managers look at issues outside their department, and prepare some ideas about what they see as potential issues and possible solutions that can be discussed by the group as a whole. It's a good way to make the meeting interactive and jolt people out of their comfort zone. It's also a good way to give workers a sense of ownership in the business and show that their opinions and ideas can make a difference.

One great tool in meetings that we use is called the Parking Lot. Essentially, the Parking Lot is a place where you "park" items that come up in discussion. You can write these items on a white board or something similar. This keeps the discussion from getting off-course, but makes sure that the items are discussed at some point.

Make sure you save enough time at the end of every meeting to develop strategies for problem solving and how they can best be executed. Again, all too often, meetings end with no concrete outcome, and therefore managers are forced to call another meeting to follow up. This can be a huge waste of time and money.

According to data by effectivemeetings.com, most professionals attend a total of 61 meetings per month, which translates into about four lost work days, and that more than half of the time spent during meetings is wasted.

On September 1st our FGP Asheville office participated in Hands on Asheville’s Annual Day of Caring. This year’s event marked the 20th anniversary of Day of Caring. The event enables workforce volunteers to contribute to the community by participating with service projects throughout Asheville and Buncombe counties.

More than 1,200 volunteers from 63 local businesses and the public at large completed 71 projects to support 60 local nonprofits, schools and public entities. This year, our representatives from FGP’s Asheville office volunteered at the Beaverdam YMCA and made a remarkable difference! Great job!

In an article entitled “The Worst On-boarding Indignity . . . Ever,” Jon Picoult tells the story of a Fortune 50 company whose new hire orientation went disastrously wrong. At this organization’s office building, “an employee ID badge is required to access the restrooms. Here’s the catch, though: On average, it takes about six weeks for new employees to get their ID badge! What greater indignity could you impose on employees, but to require them to ask a colleague (or, worse, their boss) to borrow an ID badge so they can answer nature’s call?” Picoult later learned that the delay in the ID badge process came from a cost-cutting measure which had outsourced the badge ID creation. The intentions may have been right, but someone didn’t think of the effects this decision would have on new hires.

Many organizations are challenged with effectively on-boarding new employees. This is an area of low hanging fruit where some very simple tips could add much value to an organization.

“I can’t imagine having to work for you!” is a phrase my husband has uttered a few times, typically in jest when I’m being picky about a household chore (don’t all perfectionists make sure that the back of the TV is dusted every week?). And while I know he is just giving me a hard time, I have wondered what it is like to work for me. After all, direct reports will rarely give you 100% honest feedback—a challenge when most of us truly do want to lead well.

As businesses have run more leanly than ever before, many of you may have been put in positions of leadership without any official leadership training. You want to be good bosses, you want to lead well and have the right balance of empathy and firmness. But sometimes you don’t know how.

In an excellent series of articles on Harvard Business Review’s website, Robert Sutton, author of Good Boss, Bad Boss, outlines twelve things that good bosses believe. One of these is “I have a flawed and incomplete understanding of what it feels like to work for me."

Speculation among sports fans everywhere rages as to whether or not Michael Jordan will be considered history’s greatest basketball player. There are valid points to each side of the debate, and fully educated authors and columnists fall on either side of this watershed point. However, one aspect regarding the legacy of “His Air-ness” is not in question. He was and remains the greatest tool for sports marketing in history.

In the early 90’s Nike excelled to become an internationally recognized brand that was characterized by the phrase “Just Do It.” This brand and slogan became the symbol for athletes, competitors, and winners. The fact that the brand chose MJ as their poster child and spokesman only furthered their cause. However, the idea was bigger than just basketball or sports. An entire society was captivated by this idea of getting things done and winning.

Look at the economy throughout the decade. America thrived as a society and new innovations in technology and communication were born. Profits soared for businesses, and individuals made dreams into realities through hard work and creative thinking.

Then, the century turned.

We became a society obsessed with the insignificant. Rather than finding motivation in slogans such as “Just Do It,” we became captivated by trivial ideas such as "silly bandz," Justin Bieber, and Chinese cartoons (we’re even giving them our market for entertainment!).

This cultural shift could be seen anywhere, but nowhere more clearly than in the marketplace. Our businesses have become complacent and reactive to the circumstances they are placed in, rather than creating an environment for success. Our society is characterized by fear and a hesitancy to invest rather than a willingness to try and ultimately succeed. We need to return to the confident swagger that characterized our success previously, and put our employees in arenas where they can win. Leaders in the marketplace need to support one another by buying locally (products and services) and investing in our communities. FGP’s president, John Uprichard, summed up this sentiment well, “Don’t say ‘I can’t’ when what you really mean to say is ‘I don’t want to.’” The marketplace is ripe for movers and innovators to step in and provide leadership for the community to follow. We need more leaders to follow the pattern set by the recently departed CEO of Apple, Steve Jobs. Jobs led Apple with a reckless abandon that was founded in hard work and the desire for greatness.

We owe it to our investors (financially and otherwise), employees, and those who will follow our footsteps to move forward with progressive thought and a passion for winning. There is not a better time to take a leap without turning back. At risk of appearing cliché, our society must return to the motto that has characterized us before, “Just Do It.”

Have you ever received an email from a colleague with information regarding a meeting that was taking place later in the day? The email was to contain vital information that would be discussed in the meeting. However, the email was unorganized and more confusing than it needed to be. There were misspellings, lengthy paragraphs that seemed to run together, and it took you twice as long to understand the message of the email. Because of this, you were confused and unprepared for the meeting. If you’ve ever been in that situation, you were a victim of a poorly written email.

As the workforce becomes younger, many old school rules of business have taken a backseat to a more modern day business model. These more informal ways of doing things, however, don't mean that it's not important to make a good impression in the work place.

A recent survey by Yahoo found that a majority of business executives in the U.S. thought that half of all recent college graduates lack professionalism in the workforce. One thing that can hurt a worker's image is a lack of discipline when it comes to business emails. There are a few key things you can do to ensure you send the right message.

We are proud to announce that Carrie Scott of FGP HR Consulting will be speaking at the 13th Annual GSHRM HR and Management Conference. She will be discussing:

the monetary costs of ignoring HR legal requirements.

proactive measures in implementing a voluntary HR compliance audit.

tools for audit review and best practices.

Carrie is SPHR-certified and has over 13 years of experience as an HR Manager in manufacturing, engineering & professional services industries. Carrie has worked with companies with employee bases from 50 to over 30,000. She has extensive experience in covering HR issues including, but not limited to; training & program development and execution, policy & procedure development, compensation benefits, employee relations, and labor relations/union avoidance.

Before joining FGP HR Consulting, she held human resource management positions with prominent national and international organizations. She has been responsible for HR department start ups and the management of multiple HR sites within a single company. Carrie has implemented multiple Human Resources systems, including online Time & Labor systems and performance review & management systems, as well as the implementation of two different types of online recruiting systems.

You can find more information on and register for the HR Conference here.

Every few years, the news is saturated with stories of well-known corporations that become embroiled in lawsuits due to their failure to put into practice anti-harassment anddiscrimination policies. There are countless examples to choose from: FedEx, for example, lost a sexual harassment case in 2005 in which two female employees were awarded more than $2 million in punitive damages. Hewlett-Packard’s CEO was forced to resign in 2010 due to sexual harassment allegations. And Aaron’s Rent-To-Own was just hit with a $95 million sexual harassment verdict in June of 2011.

But perhaps less well-known are the stories of corporations that successfully defend against harassment and discrimination suits. Taking a look at what they did right can be a helpful step in protecting your own company from harassment and discrimination lawsuits.

The recent example of Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. Dukes et al. is a good place to start. The case was brought by a female Wal-Mart cashier in 2001 who alleged that she had been discriminated against because of her sex. The case became the biggest job discrimination suit in history when the plaintiff and three other female Wal-Mart employees sought to represent 1.6 million other women who were or had been employed by the company and experienced gender discrimination. The Supreme Court of the United States ultimately decided that the plaintiffs could still sue Wal-Mart on an individual basis, but Wal-Mart was able to sink the class-action lawsuit which would have cost Wal-Martin the tens of billions of dollars. Their rebuttal was reported in the Washington Post:

“Wal-Mart . . . emphasizes that its corporate policy forbids discrimination, encourages diversity and ensures fair treatment . . . Hiring decisions are made by local store managers rather than at the corporate level, and the store managers [are] given wide discretion in pay and promotion. At 90% of the company’s stores, there’s no pay difference between men and women.” Another recent successful caseis Wilson v. Moulison North Corp., which was decided in March of this year. Moulison North Corporation successfully defended a racial discriminationsuit because the company had appropriate anti-harassment policies; the proper channels were in place to alert supervision of any harassment; and the company enforced timely disciplinary action when harassment was brought to its attention.

Where does your company stand? Is it the next FedEx, HP, or Aaron’s? Does your leadership assume harassment isn’t much of a threat, and that it doesn’t have to be taken seriously? Assuredly, more companies fall into that category than what you might think.

If you’d like to take some action and put your mind at ease, here are a few steps that will likely solve all of your harassment worries.

Implement an anti-harassment policy. This is an absolute must for all organizations, for-profit and not-for-profit alike, but it won’t get you across the finish line on its own.

Maintain channels for employees to alert management of discrimination or harassment. A 24-7 hotline is one popular option for larger companies. But it is wise to go even further with multiple channels: perhaps, listing the contact information of an HR manager or direct supervisor to whom harassment complaints must go directly as well.

Ensure all new hires receive and sign your anti-harassment policy.

Train supervisors and managers on anti-harassment policies every year or so. All managers and supervisors need to know how to react if ever presented with a harassment complaint.

Take any complaints about discrimination or harassment seriously. The most common error made by employers is not taking corrective action against, or at least investigating, complaints when they first arise.

It’s estimated by some that legal fees for an average harassment lawsuit are between $300,000 and $500,000. And that’s not including any damages that might be awarded. So while it is time consuming and tedious to enforce anti-harassment policy in the workplace, it is definitely time well spent. If we can help you develop this policy, please give Vicki Peek a call at 1-800-638-1661.

Social media is big. If you question that, just look at the recent article by Business Insider that points out that at the end of the day on July 29, 2011, Apple Corporation (creator of iPhone, iPod, iTunes) had more cash on hand than the U.S. Government. Or that if Facebook were a country it would be the world’s 3rd largest and 2x the size of the U.S. population. Scary? Yep.

Social Media has created a new challenge for many of us, whether we are in marketing, HR or simply management in general. Wikipedia defines social media as “the use of web-based and mobile technologies to turn communication into interactive dialogue.” The majority of your employees probably utilize Twitter, Facebook, and/or YouTube. And for a manager, social media is new, difficult, and potentially dangerous territory.

It seems innocent (and personal) enough, but as social media has grown, the lines between our personal and professional lives have become so blurred that nothing is private anymore. In his book Socialnomics, Erik Qualman says that “As an individual, you need to live your life as if your mother is watching, because she probably is via social media.” The same is true for our professional relationships. Co-workers, clients, and strangers are all watching—and making judgments—based on what is communicated through social media.

Why is this important? Well, ask yourself: “Does what my employees communicate through social media build my brand or tear it down?” Do you see employees commenting that it’s been a “horrible day at work”? Or is it simply something inappropriate that you don’t want associated with your company? After all, your people are your brand! And most importantly, is there anything you can do about this rampant invasion of social media?

Without a doubt, social media is an area where employers do have to tread carefully from a legal perspective. If you’re facing a situation where your employees have been inappropriate on social media, our first and most immediate caution to all employers is to be very careful when it comes to making disciplinary decisions due to social media run amuck. “Recent rumblings from the National Labor Relations Board,” advises Mark Bakker, Employment Attorney with Wyche Law Firm, “should make employers wary of publishing overbroad social media policies and enforcing violations of such policies that infringe on an employee’s rights to discuss the terms and conditions of his/her employment. On-line comments - even complaints about management or company policies - can, under some circumstances, be considered ‘protected activity’ within the National Labor Relations Act, which means it applies to employees in non-unionized settings.”

For example, in February of this year, reports Info Law Group, “the NLRB [National Labor Relations Board] filed an administrative complaint against a Connecticut ambulance company alleging that the company violated an employee’s federal rights by firing her for criticizing a manager on Facebook.”

“While social media platforms are powerful tools for many employees today, both on a personal and professional level, organizations should still understand that there are potential risks involved with this new way of connecting to the world,” advises Silvia King, SPHR, with FGP HR Consulting. “Risks such as harassment, defamation, and disclosure of confidential information are the first that come to mind—let alone activity that is protected by the NLRA (even in non-unionized environments). We typically recommend to clients that they have a well written social media policy in place that sets practical and sensible limits for appropriate behavior while simultaneously maintaining an employee’s right to engage in protected concerted activities.”

But legal issues aside, realize that social media can be a force for good. The power of the crowd is unmatched and nothing gives a more ringing endorsement of your brand than the true, unsolicited (positive) stories that spread on Facebook and Twitter.

Ultimately, social media reveals the relationship you have with your employees. Do you have “fans” or simply apathetic employees? Their social media ramblings, while sometimes the result of simply a failure of foresight, often reveal deeper issues that you may need to address. “Recognize and reinforce the positive role employees play in shaping a company’s on-line brand,” advises Andrea Goldberg, PhD. “They can serve as brand ambassadors, promote core values and new products.”

Cutting off access to social media networks is not the answer, either. SocialNomics, a social media research site, argues that employees being able to access social media sites “improved productivity by nine percent”! When social media sites are blocked, employees often feel as though their employers do not trust them to work diligently or to know when it is appropriate to take a break. "As a manager, the focus needs to be on tasked results and productivity, not merely taking the toys away and hoping they don't find something else with which to play," says Dona Hall, who works in a commercial real-estate firm where social media sites are blocked, as reported by CNN.

From a legal perspective, stay as general as possible when creating a social media policy. Courtney Hunt, founder of Social Media in Organizations, recommends that employers:

“Review the entire employee handbook and/or relevant policies that could be impacted by new digital technologies.

Try to build as much durability into the policies/guidelines as possible:

Balance broad, general wording with specificity

Allow for flexibility as new case law and regulations develop

Prepare for technologies, platforms, and devices that could be used in the future.”

Especially for those of us (myself included!) who did not grow up in the social media generation, this may seem a lot to absorb. But it is important to be proactive in order to both protect and elevate the company brand. As Hunt says, “if you employ people, you should have a social media policy.” Not to worry—we’re here to help.

On September 27, FGP HR Consulting will be offering a free HR Compliance seminar geared towards business professionals (outside of HR) who are handling HR needs for their company. We’d love to have you attend--for more information, e-mail info@fgp.com. Or, if you’d like assistance creating a social media strategic plan and policy, contact Vicki Peek, Director of FGP HR Consulting, at 1-800-638-1661 for information on how we can help you leverage the value of social media while remaining safe from legal liability.

The recent economic downturn has been hard on workers at every professional level, from entry to executive. Many of those who have been laid off have years of experience in their fields and a strong resume to show for it. But in today’s economic world, that “knock ‘em dead” resume can be an obstacle instead of a benefit. Employers are often wary of candidates who have more experience than the job description requires, thinking that an overqualified person might be difficult to manage, a poor fit for the organization’s culture, or someone who will leave as soon as a better opportunity arises. Although there is some foundation for these fears, it is also true that overqualified individuals can make excellent employees and quickly take on increased responsibility.

We all know that social media has changed the way we look for work, but one website in particular is starting to emerge as a major player for candidates and employees - Twitter. Although it was at first used more as a tool to follow celebrities on the internet than a legitimate communication medium, Twitter is now being used by a number of high profile companies looking to enhance both their corporate image and their client base.

Businesses using Twitter have found it to be a powerful marketing and branding resource, and the same is possible for employees. According to job coach Arnie Fertig, Twitter is a great way to create a strong professional profile that will position you as a highly knowledgeable and respected professional - someone that your current or future employer will put efforts into retaining.

For many managers, handling conflicts within an organization can be one of the most challenging aspects of the job. Many people bring personal issues to work with them—after all, you can’t just drop your baggage at the door when you walk into work. It’s important to remember that your co-worker may have something huge going on in his or her personal life, so be as empathetic as possible when conflict arises.

But no matter what is going on in your employee’s personal life, conflict is not acceptable in the office. It will breed discontent, gossip and ill-will. As a manager, it is your responsibility to analyze the conflict in your office and resolve it quickly—and not just by declaring a “winner” and a “loser.” "What we think of as the usual way of resolving conflicts does not foster resolution," says ResolutionWorks founder Stewart Levine in his article "The Many Costs of Conflict," as reported by Beverly West of Monster.com. "Unfortunately, the operative premise that someone will win and someone will lose produces all losers, no matter who thinks they won. The dispute-resolution machinery often fuels the fire of conflict and impedes resolution."

We often get questions that start along the lines of “From where you sit . . .” or “In your experience . . .”. Many of our clients are looking for insight into the muddled and often confusing employment market. Because we deal with so many clients across so many industries, we are often able to provide new insight into employment and HR situations. For that reason, we are starting this new column in our monthly newsletter that will hopefully answer some of the more common questions we get from clients and candidates.

Q: How do I recruit great candidates, and when does the recruiting process end?

This is one of the most common question we hear from our clients. Recruiting a candidate (for both the candidate and the search consultant) is not an easy task. I often compare it to a dating process. The employer courts the candidate, the candidate reciprocates if he or she is interested, and so on.

Interviewing for a highly desirable job can be nerve-wracking even to the most cool-headed among us. Being prepared with answers to some typical interview questions, like “What accomplishment are you most proud of?” or “Describe a situation in which you failed,” is a must; but how do you make sure that those answers are memorable, insightful, and powerful enough to help you land the position?

Cube Rules, a website offering career advice for office workers, has tips on how to do just that in their post “5 Steps to Building Powerful Interview Stories.” That’s right – stories. The most compelling way to communicate your fit for a position you want is to tell a story, not just give an answer. Below are 5 points to consider when crafting your own stories.

So you've made it through the interview process with flying colors, and now are waiting on what looks to be a promising job offer. You only have one crucial step to pass: the reference check. For job seekers, lining up a list of the best references possible could be the key to landing that highly sought-after job.

In order to avoid a misstep or any potential setbacks, it is vital that job seekers choose the best personal and professional references possible to ensure that a hiring manager will know you are the right person for the position.

Unfortunately, most of us at some point or another in our careers will come face to face with a colleague or supervisor practicing unethical behavior. Whether it’s making long-distance calls on the company’s dime, harassing colleagues, or performing illegal activity like embezzling or falsifying records, unethical behavior can be extremely difficult to deal with delicately.

While the responsibility for addressing behaviors such as these, whether with disciplinary actions or more informal methods, rests with the company’s leadership, employees who witness the unethical actions of others immediately face a difficult decision: do you turn a blind eye, or do you do something about it?

Join us on Monday, June 20 at 9am for coffee, donuts, and discussion on how to create your very best resume! This event is completely free, so please bring a friend and don't forget to bring your resume and any questions you have.

It’s no secret that Facebook can cause – and has caused – serious trouble for people who use it to post inappropriate pictures, or derogatory remarks about their workplace. Often, when we conjure up an image of such a person, we think of someone young and inexperienced; however, those in leadership positions have made, and can make, similar mistakes which can cost them their reputations or their jobs.

Conventional wisdom nowadays is to use LinkedIn for all your professional online networking, and leave Facebook out of the picture entirely. In a recent Wall Street Journal article on managing online profiles, an executive search recruiter with Orion International said, “I have a tremendous fear of Facebook. It allows too much room for your personal life to bleed over into you professional life. I’ve seen candidates lose offers because have some wild stuff on their Facebook page.”

By 2012, one in five American workers will be 55 and older, constituting over 20% of the workforce. That’s up from 13% in 2000! Here’s another surprising statistic: 42% of Baby Boomers currently plan to work beyond the traditional retirement age. So what does this mean for your business?

During past recessions, older workers would generally retire, rather than search and apply for jobs. But in today’s economic market, many mature workers are faced with the increased cost of living, outstanding mortgages, bank loans, and high medical bills. As they deal with these daily challenges, many Baby Boomers cannot afford to be out of work and are pursuing flexible or full time employment just to get by. In addition, as our growing population lives longer and maintains better health, many merely want the stimulation of having somewhere to go and the challenge that a job provides. Millions of adult workers want and need to work to ensure their current and financial security. With so many Boomers planning to work past retirement, businesses will be required to both adapt tothese new challenges and accommodate the needs of various generations, all under the same roof.

Generally, well-educated professional women with children leave the workforce at much higher rates than both men and women without children. But a growing “opt in” movement – aimed at helping women find fulfilling work on their own terms - is bringing together working mothers and other professionals who share the need and desire for flexibility, with companies that are realizing the benefits of a more results-oriented workforce. According to one of the women interviewed in a Washington Post article on the topic commented that, “How and when work gets done is somewhat irrelevant. . . . Face time is so five years ago.”

While the dedicated days or events that many leaders institute to show appreciation for staff – Administrative Professionals Day, or an annual Employee Awards Dinner, for example – can be helpful in making sure that staff members feel valued, showing true appreciation requires subtle, daily application.

Many employees today have taken on increased job duties as co-workers were laid off, have been flexible with furloughs or decreased hours, and have weathered the uncertainty of the recession with you and your company. Showing them that you value their contributions is an easy thing to do, and will offer massive rewards to your organization. After all, happy employees are productive employees!

We all know that gossip can be an ugly thing. For many human resource managers it can lead to communication breakdowns and cause personal friction among workers. In fact, many companies even have a policy against gossip in the workplace. So, we were intrigued by a recent article in Forbes that suggested that gossip can be an effective management tool, if used properly.

Many of us know that there's not a lot we can do to tamper the waves of gossip that might run rampant through the workplace on any given day, but how can we use it to our advantage when trying to build team spirit?

The Forbes article by Grant Michelson, who is also the author of "Rethinking Work," suggests that managers should use workplace gossip as a kind of informal communication that can actually help employees bond. Of course, there is all kinds of destructive gossip, but knowing how to weed out the good and the bad is another way managers can actually benefit from such talk.

Thanks to the internet and social media, most of us today are familiar with the idea of a personal brand - even if the term itself is new to you. We’ve all heard the warnings about what not to do with social media, not only because you never know who’s checking your Facebook profile, but also because your social media presence makes up a large part of your personal brand. Right?

Thousands of college graduates are ready to hit the streets to start looking for a job, and the internet is filled with all kinds of advice to make their searches easier. Even though the job market is showing signs of a rebound, if you've been displaced recently, some of the advice is worth reviewing to help you update your own job hunting skills.

According to Liz Ryan in Bloomberg Businessweek, one of the biggest mistakes new graduates make is not having a clear direction when they head out on their job search. This holds true even for the most seasoned worker, especially for those in transition. Job seekers should focus on two or three areas, whether they are looking for jobs in their chosen field, or transitioning into a new career. It's not enough to think that your resume will show direction if it's not clear how your skills can be applied to a certain position.

“Constructive Criticism” has become one of the biggest buzz-words in the management world. Wikipedia defines constructive criticism as “a compassionate attitude towards the person qualified for criticism” with the eventual goal of “intending to uplift the other person materially, morally, emotionally or spiritually.” And while your intentions can be as honorable as the day is long, giving negative feedback is an incredibly difficult undertaking. For most of you reading this newsletter, you have progressed in your career to a point where you have the responsibility of communicating with your employees on their performance, and at some point, you will have to give negative feedback. Knowing how to effectively and compassionately criticize is crucial to your development as a person and a manager.

Recently I had a few spare minutes to actually sit and decompress. Life is so busy -full of both worthy and not so worthy activities. And that begs the question: am I investing time in things that only benefit me? Or have I been captured by the reality that when I can allocate some of my time, attention, talents, and efforts to others, then purpose and meaning become crystallized?

In keeping with its mission to give back to the community, Find Great People International (FGP), is offering a series of free classes “Tips and Techniques for Finding Employment.” The classes will be held five Tuesdays in May, on May 3rd, 10th, 17th, 24th, and 31st, from 4-5pm at Find Great People, 15 Brendan Way, Suite 140, in Greenville.

Attendees will learn effective ways to improve their chances of finding good employment, from basics like creating a resume, to tips for maximizing online and social media tools during the job search.

Scheduled topics for each class are as follows:

May 3 –Resume Writing

May 10 – Searching for Jobs Online & Networking

May 17 – Interview Skills

May 24 – Marketing Yourself & Overcoming Obstacles

May 31 – Transitioning to a New Job

The classes are offered completely free of charge, and light refreshment will be provided. To sign up, please RSVP to epandolfi@fgp.com.

About FGP

FGP International is a purpose-driven, client-focused company that takes pride in partnering with you as you build a great company. We provide Executive Search, Temporary Staffing, IT Staffing & Consulting, HR Consulting, and Outplacement Services to our clients. We truly believe that great people do make great companies, and that each great person we find and develop helps your company become more successful and enduring.

We all know how digital technology has changed our everyday lives: we instantly communicate with friends via Twitter and Facebook, read newspapers and watch TV on our smartphones, and flawlessly navigate unknown landscapes with our GPSs. Most of us have accepted, if not embraced, these changes, and we make frequent use of whatever enhanced capability these new tools can give us.

There will come a time in any job when you will not like what you are doing. This is true of all jobs, temporary and permanent, full-time and part-time, corporate and industrial. Work is like life: it has its ups and downs. There are times when the temptation to quit can be overwhelming and there are thousands of memorable quotations and mantras out there about quitting. And most, if not all, of these mantras are about NOT quitting.

I was once on a temporary assignment with a company that wanted to get away from their paper filing system by storing all of their files electronically. For years, the firm had spent a great deal of money printing, copying, and storing paper files. Storage was the most expensive part of this process since it required not only filing supplies and filing cabinets, but also an ever increasing amount of office space. The paper filing system not only cost the company more money than it was worth, but it had also created frustration amongst some employees whose desks had to be relocated in order to make way for additional filing cabinets. When confronted with the overall cost of paper files to their budget and to their associates, the firm decided enough was enough: no more paper. Now all they had to do was figure out how to transfer all the paper files to digital files…which is where I came in.

Recently I spoke with one of our clients about upcoming projects. As we were beginning to draw up our plan of action, we started discussing the usual questions that come up during a planning meeting: which project was most urgent, which would require the most time and effort, what issues might we have to anticipate, and several other topics.

But the client kept repeating the one phrase that can shoot down any idea in one breath: “I just don’t have the time for that right now.” Of course, he is by no means the first person I’ve heard say that. In fact, for most professionals from the executive level down to the administrative level, there is one common element tying us all together: a heavier workload.

Think for a minute: would you rather have a raise or a weekly one-on-one meeting with your CEO? McKinsey, a global management consulting firm, recently surveyed over 1,000 employees, managers and executives and asked them to rank what motivated them the most.

Interestingly enough, the survey found that financial incentives were not in fact the best way to motivate your workforce. The following non-financial incentives were ranked higher on the motivational chart.

For many workers displaced during the recent economic downturn, finding temporary employment was a good way to stay in the job market and bring in some much needed income. Now, it appears as if more workers are finding that temporary employment can be a long-term gig.

In 2007, a survey was conducted by the Conference Board Consumer Research Center in NY that showed a dramatic increase in job dissatisfaction from 20 years ago. The survey suggested that over half of all Americans hated their jobs.

One of the major causes for job dissatisfaction was lack of growth potential and limited promotions. However, job dissatisfaction could be the reason some of us are passed over for promotions and cannot grow in our current role.

U.S. News & World Report recently released an article suggesting that loving your job could greatly improve your chance of success. Not surprisingly, the report finds that those who love their jobs often try harder due to their enthusiasm for the task at hand. In the end, workers’ optimism generated determination to achieve results.

Don’t post inappropriate pictures of yourself. Admittedly, the term “inappropriate” could relate to any number of things, for sake of this argument, let’s go with all of it. Inappropriate dress, venues, substances, etc. If you wouldn’t be comfortable with your mom seeing a picture of you at Mardis Gras ‘09, don’t post it online for the rest of the world (i.e. your boss and the people who will be sitting next to you in staff meeting) to see.

Due to budget cuts that are nearly across the board, nearly all businessmen and women have had to take on more tasks in order to make up for the extra slack. The Bureau of Labor Statistics recently released a report that found overall productivity increased at a 2.6 percent annual rate during the fourth quarter of 2010. The report found that the gain in productivity is a result of a 4 percent increase in company output and a 1.4 percent increase in the amount of average hours worked.

This could be good news for those currently looking for a job, as Medill Reports suggests that the increase in productivity could potentially lead to more job opportunities. However, analysts are quick to point out that this could possibly lead to a lower rate of productivity. As employees begin to feel the support of additional team members, they may not work as hard.

“To err is human, but to really foul things up requires a computer.” -Farmers' Almanac, 1978

If you use a computer at work, you know there comes a time when a document, project or your entire day can fall victim to one fatal key stroke. Simply by hitting the “Tab” button at the inopportune time, I have erased paragraphs and entire documents. I’ve deleted columns of critical numbers from spreadsheets, altering formulas without immediately noticing. Some computer mistakes are just so awful, they have you pulling out hair, shaking your fist or staring at the screen in bewilderment.

"Be not afraid of greatness,” Shakespeare said. “Some are born great, some achieve greatness and some have greatness thrust upon them."

Looking around at all the great leaders throughout history and even in the present day, it is easy to assume that these people have sought leadership out—it attracted and inspired them. But a little-discussed fact is that many times the people we see as great leaders may not have even chosen or wanted to be a leader. It may have just been thrust upon them in their normal course of life. And many times those unsuspecting leaders are of the personality that doesn’t, well, like leadership.

Please join the Upstate Chamber Coalition and the Upstate Legislative Caucus on Friday morning, March 4th for our first quarterly summit this year. This summit will be on important labor and employment issues facing our Upstate business community.

Officials from the S.C. Department of Employment and Workforce (DEW) will discuss the recent reorganization in their agency and how that impacts your business. They will also discuss the recent Unemployment Insurance (UI) tax notices that were mailed out to employers on January 31st.

Find Great People, Int. (FGP) announces an exciting change taking place in its Human Resources Consulting division, Align HR. Since FGP acquired Align HR in 2007, Align HR has been a vital but separate entity, specializing in a full range of HR services covering the entire employment life cycle. Now, it becomes a fully integrated part of the FGP family as FGP HR Consulting.

“Early on in my career,” writes Whitney Johnson, founding author of Rose Park Advisors in an article on the Harvard Business Review blog, “I had a boss who discounted my ability to connect with clients. My numbers for meetings and phone calls with clients was 40% higher than the firm average, but he brushed off these efforts because I clearly enjoyed that part of my job and it was easy for me. Later, a different boss recognized and encouraged my talent for reaching out to people, and his praise enabled me to further develop that skill. It had a far-reaching impact on my job performance at that company, and in everything I've done since.”

As a leader, part of your job is to motivate your employees to envision, think & experience the value of your company’s culture. Your ability to communicate can build a culture that believes your message. How do you create an environment that embraces the values that will help you succeed? The principle of good communication is easier than you may think.

Question: How do we communicate what is most important to us? Answer: Most often, we communicate naturally (i.e. without even thinking about it).

The other day, I overheard a gentleman in the airport talking to his co-worker. At one point he said "everyone's self-made, but only the successful admit it." His comment stayed with me throughout the day and continues to make periodic visits from my memory. There is some truth in that comment.

Working smart means delivering on our goals and objectives by focusing resources on the right things.

The oldest question in recruiting- where can I find the best candidates? Recruiting may have not been on your radar over the last few years, but trends are showing that hiring is going to be a big part of our jobs in the coming year.

According to the 2000 Census there are 8,000 Baby Boomers turning 60 and 11,000 turning 55 each day. These employees, who have made up the largest part of our workforce, are beginning to retire. Estimates indicate that by the end of 2010 45% of the US workforce will be 55 or older, less than 40% are age 25-54 and less than 15% are age 16-24. The retirement of the Boomers are going to leave us with a real need and real competition for talent.

If you’re like me, you probably remember the first time you made a mistake at work. The heart-cluching panic, the pit in your stomach . . . in short, not the best feeling in the world.

And until we become perfect (which I don’t see happening in the near future), mistakes will continue to happen. Conflict will occur. Relationships will become strained. How do you recover from mistakes and misunderstandings?

There’s an old saying that goes, “The only bad thing about burning your bridges behind you is that the world is round.” That, in addition to the overwhelming reality of the social network that connects everyone and anyone, is good cause for any employer to stop, pause, and examine what they are communicating by their hiring process.

FGP celebrates Halloween at the Meyer Center for Special Children by participating in Trunk or Treat 2010!

A great part of living and working in Greenville (well, for one of our offices!), is the ability to participate in functions like Trunk or Treat! We had the opportunity to go out, dress up, and give candy to these precious children!

Practicing what you preach isn't always easy. I got a call this week from a Search Engine Management company (that shall remain unnamed) looking to earn our business. Out of courtesy, I remained on the call . . . and remained . . . and remained. When I saw that this sales person was not going anywhere, and feeling just a wee bit annoyed, I decided to google "Search Engine Management." To my surprise, this (Search Engine Management) company appeared nowhere ... on the first five or six pages.

Find Great People, Intl. is looking for great professional candidates in the Spartanburg area! We will be hosting a job fair on Thursday, October 14, at the Spartanburg County Library (Headquarters Location - 864-596-3500, 151 South Church Street, Spartanburg, SC 29306). It will be held from 11:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.

Please bring your resume and be prepared for a brief interview to determine eligibility for the positions we are looking for. All positions being hired for are professional in nature, including administrative, customer service, and marketing.

The job market is starting to loosen up--good news for job searchers but bad news for employers! In fact, an article in the Wall Street Journal reports that more workers are quitting than are being laid off. In fact, "60% of workers said they intended to leave their jobs when the market got better!" Here's a quick look at the question that all employers are asking when they are at greater risk of losing their employees: “How can we keep our employees loyal to our company in a rising job market?”

If you're like most others out there, the economy has taken its toll on your business. So I'd be willing to bet that work has been pretty hectic for you. You're probably carrying the workload of 2 or 3 people since someone has been laid off and their position hasn't been replaced. And maybe this week, the stress levels have been particularly high and you're ready to call it quits. As a consultant who has worked with many displaced workers over the past few years, first let me say that I understand. An extremely high workload results in strain on your health, personal relationships and even psychological state.

Stephanie Trotter just published a great article in Greenville Talk regarding the upside to downsizing.

"Coffee talk in the company cantina has taken on an all-new tenor the past two years. Mumblings of the economy, P&L statements, and clients won, lost or bankrupt — workers know the days of staying with a single employer for decades and retiring with a gold watch on their wrist are long gone. Uncle Sam’s stats show the median tenure for professionals at any one place sits at five years, give or take a month. In fact, with pink slips flying through the air, many consider themselves lucky to be collecting a paycheck at all.

But that brings us to the upside of downsizing. Getting laid off can provide an opportunity for new and exciting adventures in the work force. Not to go all Pollyanna during an emotional time of upheaval, pay cuts and furloughs, but the old saying about when one door shuts, another opens can certainly apply. Meet some success stories. . ."

We are so proud and honored to be listed in the Inc. 5000 list of the fastest growing private companies in the country for the fifth consecutive year!

“To be recognized in the Inc. 5000 list for one year was exciting,” says our President, John Uprichard, “but to be honored for the fifth consecutive year truly speaks to the sustained performance of the great people in our company. It is an honor that we share with our clients. Without them, there would be no recognition.”

According to Inc. Magazine, for more than 27 years the Inc. 5000 has served as a benchmark for the most innovative, dynamic, and successful companies in the nation. As an Inc. 5000 honoree, we are now a member of the most influential business club in America. We are so excited to be 1 of only 196 of the 5,000 companies on the 2010 list to have made the list five times or more!

Screening resumes is one of those activities that requires much time (which HR managers have little of). And in the technological world we live in today, resumes of all kinds can flood the inbox of the HR manager. When a pile of resumes begins to build up, it’s easy for them to become a product of selective attention. For example, it’s easy to fall into the trap of screening only the resumes of those who have an “inside track” or, even worse, screening those at the top of the pile. Hiring managers must be able to screen through resumes quickly and objectively – and of course, be able to bring in the qualified candidates for interviews. In my experience with screening resumes, I’ve noticed some overarching guidelines that I use to make sure I give the right people priority.

As the economy has taken its toll on our businesses, it has taken a toll on our morale as well. As often as once a week, I run across an article about the importance of lunch breaks or even forced time off. Workplaces are running as lean as possible, and that often results in individual employees logging many hours. A poll by the Society for Human Resource Management showed that burn-out from their current job was one of the top ten reasons employees voluntarily leave their organizations.

Danielle Pereira, Align HR Operations Manager and Consultant, was recently selected to be a part of the Society for Human Resource Management’s (SHRM) Young Professionals Advisory Team.

The HR Young Professional’s group helps create a foundation for SHRM's professional members age 30 and under by providing resources and educational opportunities relevant to the young HR professional today and building community for the next generation of HR leadership through social media and networking activities. The Advisory team provides feedback on improvement of existing services, identifies strategies to acquire and retain HRYP members, promotes and coordinates YP Activities, among other responsibilities.

As VP of Business Development and a 20-year veteran of Find Great People International, I’ve seen plenty of superbly qualified candidates. Yet I’ve also seen many of them sidestep some of the simplest, most straightforward methods of propelling themselves into higher positions.

The best progress, in fact, is gradual, perhaps even invisible. It’s the kind no one seems to notice––until one day they wake up and realize that their buddy Ben is now regarded as some sort of corporate celebrity. Don’t laugh. It can happen. So how do you become more valuable to your company while gathering the enduring respect of colleagues, and what’s more, do it without coming off as pompous or self-serving? Here are a few ideas.

We often get asked what the market is like for IT professionals.The demand for IT professionals has skyrocketed this year. It seems (at least in the Upstate South Carolina area) that companies are starting to turn loose some budgetary purse strings and bring on additional technical expertise as needed. We have seen a surge in hiring both for short-term contract and project roles and full-time roles as well. The companies looking for talent range from manufacturing to hi-tech and financial companies.

You'd be surprised how often we get asked that question. Some employers simply have an employee with decades of tenure under his or her belt who has slowly but steadily risen up the economic ranks. Other employers established pay scales that made sense in 2007, when the economy was booming, but are far too high now. Either way, employers want to know if what they are paying employees is equitable.

FGP is a great place to work. Of course, I may be just a little biased, but so many times when I hear my friends talk about their jobs or their workplace culture, I think about how blessed I am to work at a place that...

- has trips to TCBY on a monthly basis to celebrate employees' birthdays...

Every employer has a different view on how to manage their employees’ socialization. Some keep it to a minimum as much as possible, positing that it interferes with employees’ productivity. “Ken Siegel, a psychologist and president of the Impact Group, a psychologists' group that consults with business management, says he doesn't believe workplace friendships are real. True friendships, he says, can't exist when there are issues such as money and status at play.” In addition, the article goes on to say, friendships at work can harm productivity.

As HR consultants, one of our primary goals when we enter into a partnership with a client is to reduce the stress and strain on the person who is handling HR needs. One of the most common dilemmas we see relates to the use of technology within HR. HRIS systems are so comprehensive that many companies will actually use them in place of an HR professional. Many of our clients are concerned if this is the best way to go, and we understand that concern. When the most important resource is your workforce, you want to manage it with care and efficiency. For most of our clients, the most efficient and accurate way to manage your “human capital” is by allowing technology to help.

Steve Hall, Vice President of Business Development at FGP International, has been selected to participate in Leadership South Carolina as a member of the Class of 2011. Steve commented, “I am very excited about continuing this journey of learning how to serve others throughout our state! Given the challenges we face as a community and as a state, I am hopeful that Leadership SC will showcase how other communities throughout SC are rising above those challenges. It is an honor to be selected and I look forward with great expectation toward bringing some of those ideas back to the Upstate!””

The BP Oil Spill has turned into an economic, ecological and political disaster. Americans across the country are frustrated and upset that the leak cannot be stopped and oil is ravaging our coastline. We all hope a solution to the leak will come quickly, for the sake of all involved. However, as we’ve observed the growing crisis, a few thoughts have come to mind as to what anyone managing people can learn from the crisis.

With the uncertain economy, companies are utilizing temporary staffing more and more often in recent days. But do temporary employees cause unrest among the tenured, permanent employees? A recent study by the University of Arizona (http://www.eller.arizona.edu/news/2010/05/06_Temp_workers_nonstandard_not_substandard.asp) “discovered that full-time employees in workgroups with larger proportions of temporary workers were less satisfied with their colleagues and supervisors.”

It's an interesting observation, and one certainly worth thinking about as research suggests that companies are hiring fewer full-time, permanent employees and leaning toward the safer route of hiring temporaries. In my experience, I've found that my clients who have the best success with using temporaries are the ones who are pro-active about it. Below are a few suggestions to make the transition easier.

One of the pet peeves I hear from job seekers reaching out to search consultants is when they don’t hear back. I’ve been there myself, and I sure can empathize with you. I too hate it when we don’t hear back from our client about a great person we’ve worked hard to verify they’re a good fit and to present. I also empathize with that hiring manager, who may be holding down both his job and the job of the person he’s trying to hire, let alone find time to look at resumes, interview, and make a decision who to hire. I’ve been there, too. He or she scarcely has time to decide yes, no or maybe, let alone let the recruiter know why.

On Friday, May 7, 2010, the South Carolina Economic Developers Association (SCEDA) elected its Officers for 2010-11. Heather Simmons Jones, Business Development Professional with Find Great People, was elected to serve as Vice-President of the organization. The vote took place during the organization's annual meeting in Myrtle Beach, SC. Ms. Jones will serve along side April Allen, Sr. Business Development Manager for O’Neal, Inc, who will serve as this year’s President. Others serving on the Executive Committee include Jennifer Noel,VP of Marketing for the Upstate Alliance and George Wolfe, attorney at Nelson Mullins Law Firm in Columbia.

As the VP of Business Development at FGP, I have the privilege to participate in some amazing opportunities in the Greenville Community. One of these, however, has impacted me far beyond the others. On the last day of April, I had the privilege of witnessing an amazing event—the culmination of the Leadership Greenville experience. For each of the last 36 years a brand new group of 50 professionals from all walks of life (age, race, industry, geographical, religious, political, gender) has gathered for a 9 month journey that in their own words "transformed their lives." We're talking Life Altering!

Many of our clients face huge decisions when one of their C-level employees retires or decides to change careers. A high-level hiring decision is difficult enough as it is, but the risk quickly multiplies with the current economic conditions. Companies are unsure of what the future holds for their organization, so they are leery to extend a permanent offer to a high-level person. But no self-respecting CFO would accept a temporary job, right?

Upstate, SC – Find Great People, Intl. is pleased to announce the addition of four new team members.

Heather Jones joins the team as a Business Development Professional to help her clients build great companies. Prior to coming to FGP, she led the economic development of Allendale County, Greater Beaufort-Hilton Head and Anderson County.

Chip Cooper joins FGP Technology as a Business Development Professional with over ten years of experience, most recently at Concentrix (a subsidiary of Synnex). Before joining FGP, Chip established the Greenville Chapter of HDI (Help Desk International).

According to MarketWatch (part of WSJ's Digital Community), a worker shortage is coming our way. Hard to believe? We thought so, too. But take a look:

"With millions of unemployed people across the country struggling to find work, it may seem unbelievable that there could be more jobs than workers to fill them in coming years, but a new report predicts exactly that.

Red carpet, beautiful dresses, suspense – it’s the Oscars! This year’s list of nominees was extremely reflective of the times ranging from topics such as Iraq, alien invasion, and most importantly to HR minds, layoffs. Up in the Air brought the concept of layoffs to a whole new level by introducing outplacement companies to the general public. As a young professional, I had never heard of outplacement before joining Align HR. Come to find out, the reputation outplacement holds isn’t the best.

Knowing that the economic downturn affected those in need that much more, FGP was proud to participate in the 2009 United Way campaign as a way of giving back to our community. At the recent United Way Awards luncheon on January 26th, FGP was presented with four awards, including a 25% or more increase in employee participation, a 25% or more increase in financial participation and the Chairman’s Award. The Chairman’s Award goes to only a small number of companies who significantly increase their giving over the previous year.

We are proud of each one of our team members who gave to the United Way campaign, and want to recognize them publicly for being commited to building great communities.

In a recent article on the NY Times / Monster.com career site, Chuck Drake, Division Manager for Healthcare Recruitment at FGP International in Greenville, S.C., was quoted in an article regarding the state of Healthcare Recruitment in 2010.

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